


Impressions

by TheLadyBath



Series: Ohana [5]
Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: F/M, Family, Hurt/Comfort, Mystery, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-10
Updated: 2017-02-10
Packaged: 2018-09-23 08:24:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 26,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9647954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheLadyBath/pseuds/TheLadyBath
Summary: Note that this chapter will have adult scenes that may be somewhat graphic. Read at your own risk





	1. Chapter 1

Alyssa sat in her office at Five-O headquarters, trying desperately to ignore what seemed, to her, a deafening silence. Everybody else was in the field on a case, and she was alone. In the background a flat screen on the wall was tuned to the local news station and a scanner buzzed in the background indicating the location and activities of the HPD officers across the island.

She had not yet been cleared to return to work, but she had begged and pleaded with Steve to let her return the office. She promised that she would do anything – anything at all, just to get out of the house and to be back with her Five-O family. Grudgingly, Steve finally agreed to let her return to work in an unofficial capacity – no badge and no gun and only part time. Alyssa was thrilled and jumped in enthusiastically. Within the first ten days of her return, the entire team had caught up on all of their paperwork and their files were finally fully organized. It took several more days, but even the electronic assets were categorized and saved on a secure server.

After a few weeks, Alyssa found herself at loose ends. She then had an idea. Wo Fat's organization needed to be funded and funded well. It had many assets such as the home that housed the brothel. Perhaps if she could trace any of the funding for assets that she could link to Wo Fat, she might be able to learn more about the organization and, if she was lucky, find Wo Fat. Steve approved of the approach; as long as she stayed in the office and did no investigating herself.

Alyssa jumped into the project enthusiastically. Getting the financial information for the house was simple since it was a Five-O case. It took some fast talking, but she was able to get bank records from all the banks across Hawaii.

Alyssa had high hopes as she settled down in front of her computer with the data that was sent over. Her enthusiasm dimmed along with her hope and by the third day she was close to admitting defeat. She had been able to trace the account that paid for the house and had actually identified several more assets that probably belonged to Wo Fat and his conglomerate. She was able to trace the transactions through several banks and across several continents, but every time she would lose the threads once the transactions occurred in Asia. There was so much commingling of funds that she would lose the money trail. It was the black box of transactions – funny – she had always thought that this was the case for Switzerland and the Cayman Islands, but she was being stumped in an entirely different part of the world.

She needed to speak to somebody with a lot more expertise than she had. Somebody from the financial world who understood the flow of these transactions and could help her decipher what she was seeing. Alyssa thought for a moment. A CFO of a bank would understand the monetary implications, but would probably be lost in the world of digital transactions and virtual funds. She needed to talk to the Chief Information Officer – the CIO; this person would be much more technically savvy and could perhaps help her untangle this mess.

With some renewed hope, Alyssa began a Google search. Of all the banks with headquarters on Oahu, only three actually had the CIO position. Alyssa picked up the phone and started calling. BBCN had a CIO, but he was out of the country on business and would not be returning for several weeks. Alyssa managed to reach the CIO for bank of the Orient, but was rebuffed in her request; the CIO said that she was much too busy to be bothered with this exercise and wished Alyssa good luck in her endeavors. With a sigh, Alyssa dialed up First Hawaiian Bank and asked for Miss Denise Evans. Alyssa held her breath as she was transferred.

"Hello, this is Denise. How may I help you?" The voice was young and had just a slight accent. To Alyssa, she sounded very cultured. The tone was professional, but friendly.

"Miss Evans. I am Officer Alyssa Grant from the Five-O task force. Thank you for taking my call. I am working on some financial analytics and I am afraid, I am at the end of my expertise as I try to trace the transactions across the world. Would this be something you could help with and would you be willing to assist the task force?" A prolonged silence on the other side of the phone caused Alyssa to hold her breath.

Finally, Denise replied. "I think I may be able to assist you. Can you please provide me some details?"

Now it was Alyssa's turn to hesitate. "I would prefer not to discuss this over the phone. Some of the information is...," a slight pause,"...sensitive. Is there any way that we could meet in person and I can show you what information I have and where I seem to lose the trail."

"I can stop by your office on my way home from work," Denise suggested. "Where are you located?"

Alyssa provided the address. "Thank you so much, Miss Evans," Alyssa said. "Your help will be invaluable. I was completely at my wits' end on what to do."

Alyssa was almost certain that she heard a slight smile in the tone of voice that responded to her," You are welcome Officer Grant. I will see you at your office at about 5:30."

Alyssa was straightening up some of the files, when she heard voices. She looked up and saw Steve and Danny walk in. They were arguing, as usual.

"Hey, Danny," Steve was saying. "I'm only trying to help."

"This type of help, I don't need," was his partner's curt reply.

"Running will help your heart. Keep you from having a heart attack," Steve was persistent.

"You know what would keep me from having a heart attack?" His partner countered, "You not driving my car like a maniac. Were you trying to kill us both today?"

Alyssa smiled and went back to her work. Nothing unusual there.

Steve walked up to her desk. "How are you feeling," he asked, his eyes clouding with concern.

"Better now," she said. "I may have found a way to actually track Wo Fat's finances. The CIO from First Hawaiian Bank is stopping by to see what she can do to help."

"That's good," Steve said, "but that's not what I meant. How are you feeling?"

Alyssa smiled up at her brother, "I'm fine. I want to go back to work. Please, Steve."

Steve looked his sister over carefully. She was certainly on her way to a full recovery. The bruises, scratches and broken bones had healed. She looked skinnier and slighter than she had before her ordeal, but he was certain that too would pass.

Steve smiled gently, "As soon as the doctor clears you, I will set up the qualifications testing. Once you pass that, you'll get your gun and badge back. OK?"

"Ok," Alyssa smiled at him.

She saw Chin and Kono walk in. She exchanged smiles with both of them and caught a question in Chin's eyes. She nodded slightly in response and went back to her computer.

At exactly 5:30, Alyssa looked up to see a woman, slightly older than herself walk through the door of Five-O. She was petite, maybe five feet and 2 inches, although her four inch heels with the distinctive red soles added to her height. She was dressed in a collared, tailored button down shirt and a pencil skirt. A simple pearl necklace adorned her neck and diamond studs sparkled in her ears. Her bag bore the very familiar "L" and "V" design. Her dark hair was in a glossy bun and she wore gold rimmed glasses which did nothing to hide the intelligent, bright hazel eyes. Her makeup was flawless and understated. Next to her, Alyssa felt clumsy and frumpy.

At the sight of their visitor, the team stepped out of their offices to meet her. Alyssa walked forward, her hand extended. "Miss Evans, it is so nice to meet you. Thank you so much for coming and for your help.

Denise smiled, "If we are to work together, I am Denise." Her voice held some remnants of what Alyssa thought of as an East Coast high society accent. Yet, there was something in her carriage that put Alyssa at ease immediately and made her feel comfortable. She exchanged a look with Kono; as a woman, she too noticed the Christian Laboutin heels and the Louis Vuitton bag and knew exactly how much such luxuries cost. Denise Evans was clearly well to do, but she handled herself with an unexpected warmth and friedliness. Alyssa could not help but like her.

"Denise let me introduce you to the team." In turn Alyssa introduced, Steve, Chin and Kono. Danny was slow to come out of his office, but when he did, Denise walked up to him and put out her hand. "I'm Denise Evans, CIO of First Hawaiian Bank." Danny took a moment to take her in. Her petite form, the expensive clothing, shoes and handbag – similar to what he saw Rachel wearing once she married Stan. Things that he could never have afforded to buy for her. He even recognized the perfume as something expensive, although he could not put a name to it.

"Danny Williams," he said taking her hand and, abruptly dropping it as if he had touched something distasteful. He knew, as unreasonable as it was and although he could not understand it, he deeply and viscerally disliked Denise Evans.


	2. Chapter 2

Denise saw the disdain in Danny's blue eyes. She wondered why the hell he was treating her like she had some type of communicable disease. The sour look on Danny's face made her think of her mother's old refrain regarding peeing and cornflakes. She could not help the smile that crossed her lips – a smile she quickly suppressed as she saw Danny's eyes begin to narrow in anger.

"Jerk," Denise thought to herself. "Typical cop, aren't you? See a woman in power and your precious masculinity is threatened? Well, to hell with you Detective." Denise smiled sweetly at Danny, "Pleasure to meet you, Detective. Now if you excuse me, I have work to do." She turned on her heel and headed toward Alyssa's desk.

Danny did not realize that he was watching Denise walk away and found himself enjoying the view. His thoughts were interrupted when Steve clapped him on the shoulder. The smug look on his partners face, soured any enjoyment that he was having. The smile that he did not even know he had on his face faded into a scowl and he slaked off to his office.

Denise had not intended to watch Danny go, but she found that she could not help herself. She found him ridiculously handsome with his blond hair and blue eyes. Although her encounter with those eyes was not pleasant, for some reason she was sure that they were much more used to amusement and kindness than the cold flashes to which she had been treated. He stood out from the other members of the force. While jeans and Hawaiian shirts appeared to be the norm, Detective Williams was wearing an Oxford button down shirt, dress pants and lace us dress shoes, which she had noticed had been freshly polished. Something told her, that he was actually used to wearing a tie, and that it had taken something near an act of God for him to wear his collar open. And then there was his accent. It was not one she had heard in a while, but it still sent a nostalgic warmth through her body.

Denise was brought back to reality by a quiet clearing of the throat. She shook her head; the very idea that she was even having these thoughts was ludicrous – they man clearly despised her and frankly, she thought that the feeling was pretty mutual. Denise looked up into the blue eyes of the younger woman that she had come to see. "OK," she said," How can I help you, Officer Grant?"

Alyssa took a deep breath and explained. "What I am sure of is that Wo Fat has a very large and far reaching organization. He is currently in the wind and I would do just about anything to track him and find where the son of a bitch is hiding." Denise looked up at the woman's vehemence – there was definitely some history here, but that was none of her concern; she focused back on what Alyssa was saying. "In any case, if I can figure out where the financial transactions either start or end, maybe I can figure out where he is. I can track the transactions through to Asia, but then there is weird co-mingling that I can't sort through. Frankly, I'm lost. I have no idea how to sort through this or how to figure out where the money is going. Is there a way to do that? Is there anything you can do to help me?

Denise chewed on her lip, thinking. This was quite the problem, but she liked challenges. She had liked challenges since she was in school working on math problems. It was this love for figuring things out and her tenacity that had won her the distinction of the highest math score ever to be achieved on the college entrance exam in New Jersey. Somehow, and she always thanked her lucky stars, The University of Hawaii, at Manoa, offered her a scholarship in math. Wanting to get as far as she could from the brutal New Jersey winters, Denise accepted, double majoring in applied mathematics and computer science. It proved to be the happiest time in her life. College led to Yale Business School. After graduation, Denise searched for any job that would take her back to Hawaii and when she found one for a Financial Analyst at the First Bank of Hawaii, she jumped at the chance, spending most of her savings on the move. Her skills and tenacity were rewarded and she was made the youngest CIO in the financial industry seven years ago at the age of twenty five.

"I think I can help you," Denise said. "There is a different way to approach this. We can look for proxies of the transaction, not the actual transaction. Large sums of money either deposited of withdrawn, specific behaviors or patterns. I need to think about how exactly to do it and then I can write an algorithm that will do the work for us." She reached for the lists of transactions that Alyssa was holding. "Can I get a copy of those? The computer that I have at the office is much more powerful and I think it would be better if I tried to write this on that machine."

Alyssa nodded and headed off to make copies. Denise reached for her phone to check her schedule. When Alyssa returned with a manila folder housing the information, she said, "I can get this work done over the next couple of days. I should be able to get at least something directional to you by next Monday. Would that work?"

"That would be great," Alyssa staid. "I so appreciate this." She handed the folder to Denise who set her phone down to put the paperwork in her bag.

"If there is nothing else, I should get going," said Denise. "I will be in touch. Please don't hesitate to call me if anything comes up." She looked around, Commander McGarrett, Lieutenant Kelly, Officer Kalakaua, Officer Grant; it has been a pleasure." She spared a look at Danny, "Detective Williams," she was rewarded with a grunt and a curt nod. Adjusting her purse, Denise walked out the door.

Alyssa went back to work. Sometime later, her concentration was broken by the chirping of a cell phone. Automatically, she reached for the one on her desk. "Oh, crap," she said. "Denise left her phone. We need to get it back to her." A few taps of the keyboard brought up her address.

"Hey Danny," Alyssa called out, "its on your way home. Do you suppose you could drop it off to her?"

"Why the hell not, "Danny groused. "Rachel and Stan took Grace to Disneyland on the mainland. I've nothing better to do. Give me the address."

One look, and Danny's mood soured even further. It figured that she would live in Kahala. The address showed that she lived only a few streets over from where Stan and Rachel lived. "Oh, great. Story of my life. Give me the damn phone and let me get out of here."

Alyssa handed Danny the phone, wondering what had gotten him so upset; she was used to seeing Danny sardonic and pugnacious, but usually not actually in a foul mood and angry. She shrugged. "Thank you," she said.

Danny spent the majority of the drive to Denise's house in a black mood, muttering under his breath. He was pretty sure that the universe was out to get him. He drove into the familiar gates of the estate and used the GPS on his phone to get to Denise's house.

The home, of course was beautiful. It was large and well-appointed with gorgeous landscaping. There was a blue BMW and a red Jaguar on the driveway. "Figures," Danny muttered to himself.

Suddenly, Danny stopped his muttering – something wasn't right. His instincts, honed by his years as a cop, were telling him that something was not right. Not sure why he was doing it, but Danny unsnapped the holster of his service revolver – just in case – and carefully walked toward the door. Odd – the door was opened. He had not thought that Denise was the type to forget. He had actually taken her for an uptight sort. He was at the door and was just about to ring the doorbell, when he heard a loud crash, followed by a woman's scream.


	3. Chapter 3

Danny had his gun out and had dialed Dispatch with "Officer Needs Assistance" request. He gingerly pushed the door open, scanned the area with his gun at the ready. Somewhere, deeper in the house, he heard more noise and what sounded like a scuffle.

"Miss Evans," he called out. "Its Danny Williams of Hawaii Five-O. Is everything OK?." He continued carefully into the house. Standing the large foyer, he looked around to get his bearings. He heard sounds from what he thought, based on the design of Stan and Rachel's house, to be the kitchen. Gun still in hand, he slowly moved toward the double doors. He then heard the unmistakable sound of flesh contacting flesh and what could only be a cry of pain. "Miss Evans? Denise? Are you OK."

"Bitch!", a loud masculine voice cried out. "What the hell were you thinking?"

The double doors swung open and just as Danny was raising his gun in defense, a large man lumbered out. He was not visibly armed, although his size alone could be considered a weapon. He was over six feet tall and must have weighed close to three hundred pound – very little of it was fat. He looked like a former football player who had actually managed to take good care of himself.

"Who the hell are you?" The words were slightly slurred, leading Danny to believe that the goon was inebriated. Still on his guard, Danny holstered his weapon although he did not fasten it shut. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Detective Danny Williams, Hawaii Five-O," Danny said again, feeling something very akin to déjà vu. "Who are you? Can I please see some ID please, Sir?"

"My name is Derrick Akeona and, no, you can't see any damn ID," the man was belligerent. "I'm a tax paying member of the community. You can't treat me this way."

At this moment, Danny saw Denise walk out through the double doors. She looked completely different. Gone were the tailored blouse and pencil skirt, gone the high heels and expensive jewelry. She was wearing jean shorts and tank top. Her hair, had been released from its bun and now hung down her back in a single, flowing ponytail. She looked much younger and, Danny realized with a pang, scared and vulnerable. Her arms were wrapped across her chest in a protective gesture, and there was a large red mark on her left cheek – the mark was beginning to darken. Danny realized with barely suppressed anger that Derrick must have hit her. He also noticed tears in her eyes, but by the set of her lips and the way she held her head high, he guessed they were tears of rage and not fear.

"OK, Derrick, how about we go outside and talk about it," Danny tried again.

"Screw you," was the man's response.

Danny took a deep breath. This was clearly not going like he hoped. He approached the man, his arms raised, palms facing outward in the sign of non-aggression. "Sir, you need to step outside. We can sort it all out, but we can't do it in here." Danny was focused on being non-threatening, although how he could be threatening to a man who had foot and probably fifty pounds on him was really the question here.

He slowly approached the other man. Danny was not particularly concerned. Both in his career and in his personal life, he had learnt to take on bullies much bigger than himself. This was nothing that he could not handle. It would have, perhaps, been more of a challenge, if the larger man was in full possession of this faculties, however, we was compromised both in terms of his decision making and his physical abilities. He telegraphed his intentions several seconds before and by the time he lashed out with what would have been a pretty poweful right hook, Danny was ready. All Danny needed to do, was to step slightly aside. He grabbed the other man's arm and delivered a vicious blow to the elbow with the side of his palm. The man howled in pain. Still holding the arm, Danny proceeded to twist it up and behind the man's back, bringing him to his knees. Danny then used his own knee to get the oaf to lie flat on his stomach as he handcuffed him.

Just then the uniformed HPD officers showed up and Danny hauled Derrick up and handed him off. "How about you take this gentleman outside to cool off, while I speak to Miss Evans?" The uniforms nodded, and took the larger man, still struggling outside to sit in their cruiser.

Danny could now focus on Denise. He realized that she had not moved from where she had been standing and that her arms were still wrapped across her chest. She was chewing her lip, but Danny could not determine if this was because she was angry, upset, scared or all of the above. What he did notice was that her tank said "Hoboken Waterfront Walkway." Danny was intrigued. It was a big deal back in Jersey, but outside of the the locals nobody knew about the place. He was about to ask when Denise shifted her feet and a small moan escaped her lips.

Danny followed her eyes as she looked down at her feet. She was barefoot and he noticed that her left foot was resting in a small pool of blood. The sound of shattering glass – Danny remembered. She must have cut her foot.

He moved toward Denise, "You're hurt," he said. "You need to sit down." He breathed a sigh of relief as the paramedics who usually accompanied police officers to "Officer needs Assistance" calls, walked through the door. While the two young women, sat Denise down on a bench by the door and began working on her foot, Danny walked into the kitchen. Without really thinking about it, he went to the refrigerator, opened the ice maker, took out some ice cubes, put them in a towel and brought both to the foyer. He gently applied the makeshift ice pack to the darkening bruise on her cheek. Denise flinched slightly and Danny caught her face with the other hand. His fingers tingled slightly as they brushed against her other cheek.

"What is it with men?" Denise asked, almost petulantly. "How is it that they know right where to hit a woman," she brushed her hand across the purpling stain on her otherwise fair skin, "right across the face...POW!...Do you all go to school to learn how to do that? Does somebody pull guys aside and show them how to do it."

"Not all men hit," said Danny quietly, gently. Denise looked into his eyes and saw only compassion. Involuntarily, she felt herself start to relax.

Danny noted the subtle shift in her posture and how her eyes started to lose their guarded look. It made him feel absurdly pleased with himself. "Do you want to tell me who that was and what was going on," he asked, trying to keep his voice professional and yet gentle.

Denise sighed and looked down for a moment, then she looked Danny straight in the eye, her glance challenging him to say something. "That was my ex husband."

Danny knew he must have started. "Ex husband," he repeated.

"Yah, the papers were signed a few months ago."

"So what was he doing here?" Danny asked.

"He said that he needed to get some things – his old laptop. I must have packed it up and put it in a box. I told him that I would find it and get it to him, but he wanted it now. We argued….and….well you know."

"Why'd you let him in? You must have been able to see that he was drunk?"

Denise looked away again. "I don't know. He said he needed to see me to talk to me. He made sense. Things didn't get bad until….well..after." Her look was still mutinous.

"Has he done this before? Hit you, I mean."

"That's why I filed for divorce. The first time, he raised a hand to me."

Under Danny's direct look, Denise wilted a bit, "Well, maybe not the first time."

For some strange reason, Danny found himself becoming angry. For some reason the idea that somebody had hit Denise was making his hands shake in rage and the thought that she could have been seriously hurt, was making him feel like his heart had dropped through his shoes.

"It was pretty dumb to let him in, you know." Danny did not mean for it to sound like an accusation, but the look of shock on Denise's face indicated to him that this was exactly what it was.

"I really don't need your opinion,, Detective Williams," Denise's voice was sharp with surprise and something akin to hurt.

"You are going to press charges, right?" Danny continued, seemingly oblivious to the hole he was digging. He was angry that she had been hurt, but that anger was undirected and right now, Denise was in its path.

"I'm not sure. He's an ass, but I don't know if its worth the trouble. You've no idea what a pain in the ass that would be. I really don't think I want to."

"Geez, Lady," Danny exploded. "What the hell is wrong with you? This goon comes into your house, hits you, makes a mess, and you are OK with all of it? I'don't get it. I always wonder about people like you…."

Danny stopped when he saw the look on Denise's face. The slap administered by her ex-husband may have hurt, but deep down Danny knew that he had just hurt Denise much more. The look of betrayal followed him out the door and haunted his sleep that night.


	4. Chapter 4

Danny practically growled out loud as he tossed in his bed and punched his pillow as he sought a cool spot. Yet again, Danny realized how much he hated Hawaii. Back home in New Jersey, there were always sounds outside. Cars, trucks, trains, and people talking – even in the middle of the night. Here, there was silence and that silence let him alone with his thoughts and right now those thoughts were unpleasant.

As a beat cop and then as a detective, Danny had seen countless instances of domestic violence. In almost every case, he counseled the women to report the violence and to seek help and in almost every case, when they did not do so, he vividly recalled the ambulances, and in too many instances, the coroner's van, taking the women to the hospital or worse. Akeona had hit Denise and she had refused to press charges; every domestic dispute case he had ever handled was now coming back to haunt him. When he thought how badly she could have been hurt – how badly things could have gone, he felt a rage that he could not explain – or at least explain in a way which he could currently accept.

Trouble was, he had taken his anger out on the one person who deserved none of it. Of all the lessons hammered into his head over the years, one of the crucial ones was to never blame the victim. And yet, that is exactly what he had done. He was not sure, why he was so angry; he had just met the woman that day, but for some reason, he felt that he needed to protect her. More importantly to his current sanity, he felt that he needed to apologize to her. Danny made up his mind, that the next day, he would seek her out and apologize for his behavior – maybe he would take her to an expensive restaurant for lunch – she should like that. Danny drifted off into an uneasy sleep.

Danny rolled into the Five-O offices as a rumpled, cranky mess. He immediately went to pour himself a large cup of coffee, before scanning the office. "Where's Aly?" he asked nobody in particular.

"She said that she had something to take care of this morning," Chin responded without looking up from his computer. "She said that she would be in by about 10."

Danny could do nothing else, but sit back and wait.

At 10:05 AM, Alyssa entered the office. She carried a large manila folder and her face was swathed in a large smile. She greeted everybody and headed straight into Steve's office, and not bothering to close the door.

"Good morning," she practically sang out. Steve looked up, inquiry in his eyes. Alyssa opened the folder and started laying out various documents on his desk. "Got the doctor's clearance today," she said, "and here is the report from the department shrink. As you can see, I am a paragon of mental balance and stability." Steve raised his eyebrows, but refrained from jumping on the bait that his sister had set out for him.

"Good job, Aly. Congratulations," he said. "All that's left is for you to qualify on the gun range.

Alyssa could not refrain from grinning even wider, "Actually, there was an opening this morning, so I took it. And here are my scores," she laid another piece of paper in front of her brother. "Now. Am I good to get back to work?"

Steve looked alternatively at Alyssa and then at the paperwork. His lips narrowed into a thin line. He continued to study her. "I'll look over the paperwork and let you know, Aly" was the cool reply.

"But Steve, its all here," Alyssa was stunned. Why was Steve not giving her back her gun and badge? She was ready.

"I'll review the information and let you know, Aly." There was a note in Steve's voice that Alyssa was not used to hearing, but she knew better than to argue with it. She looked at Steve for another moment, trying to figure out what to say to him, but coming up with nothing. With a final glance, Alyssa turned on her heel and left Steve's office.

Steve looked after his sister, recalling the look of pained surprise in her eyes, and shook his head. She was not ready. He knew that she was not ready. He kept telling himself that as he fought back the memories of Alyssa lying at the bottom of the ravine and how his own heart had stopped when he believed that she was dead. No, she was not ready to return to active duty...absolutely not ready.

Alyssa avoided everybody's eye contact as she sat down at her desk and turned on her computer. She was interrupted by a knock on her door. She looked up and saw Danny standing there. He gave her a sympathetic wink. "He'll get over it soon," Danny said. "You just took him by surprise."

Alyssa smiled gratefully. She knew that Danny was trying to make her feel better, but she would not really feel whole until she was back as a full member of the team. What had gotten into Steve, anyway, why was he hesitating reinstating her? Pushing all this aside, she looked back at Danny. "What can I do for you?" She asked him, putting on a brave smile.

"Where did you say, Denise Evans worked?" Danny jumped into his question with no preamble. When Alyssa looked at him dubiously, he continued. "I just want to follow up with her about yesterday. Make sure she's OK after yesterday." Alyssa looked at Danny, but he did not appear to be willing to discuss it further. She shrugged. "Denise is the CIO at First Hawaiian. It's the main branch on Bishop Street."

Danny nodded his thanks. "Danny, is everything OK?" There was something in his tone or his eyes that was telling Alyssa that something more was at stake.

"Its fine," was the curt reply. Danny then took a deep breath to regain control. "Thanks, Aly," he said. Danny turned and walked away.

Denise took another sip from her coffee cup and went back to staring at her computer. She had spent all morning trying to perfect the algorithm she would use to track the financial transactions for Five-O. It had proven more difficult then she had anticipated – primarily because she could not focus. Her mind kept wondering back to Officer Williams. Her face still tingled where he had caressed her cheek. Her fingers traced the same line as his had seemingly of their own accord.

"Not all men hit," he had said. He was kind and gentle, until his mouth took over and he became as much of a jerk as all the other men with whom she had experience. Just her luck, Denise sighed. All she wanted was to find a good man, a gentle man – but now she was wondering if they even existed. Her experience was that they were about as common as unicorns and her throbbing cheek, artfully disguised by makeup confirmed her opinion. Denise was pulled from her thoughts by the ringing of her phone. She looked at the screen and picked it up seeing that it was her assistant.

"Yes Missy," she said into the receiver.

"Miss Evans," came the perky reply. "There is a Detective Danny Williams from Hawaii Five-O to see you. Are you available?"

Danny stood at the desk of the Assistant of the CIO, trying to be patient and to look nonchalant. On both counts, he was failing miserably. All he wanted was to see her and apologize and to get this over with. She would probably look at him over her glasses and dismiss him out of hand as insignificant. He'd know people like her before. And yet – he had seen something in her that was different. There was a moment when she seemed...well...normal...even sort of attractive in a way. Danny just did not get it, but he found himself anxious to see her again.

"Detective Williams," the Receptionist interrupted his thoughts, "Miss Evans is available to see you.

Danny took a breath and opened the door into Denise's office.


	5. Chapter 5

Denise had just hung up the phone when she heard her door open. She glanced up just in time to see Detective Danny Williams enter her office. Subconsciously, her hand stole upward to fix her hair, but she settled for tucking a stray strand of hair that had escaped her pony tail behind her right ear. She continued to study Danny.

Today he was actually wearing a tie and she had to admit that she liked the way his button down shirt fit across his chest. She noticed that his hair was in disarray and realized that he must have been pulling his hand through his hair – a nervous gesture that made him look delightfully mussed.

"Good afternoon, Detective Williams," Denise said, feeling quite proud that her voice was steady. "What can I help you with?"

It took a few moments for Danny to gain his bearings upon entering the CIOs spacious office. He was surrounded by stainless steel and glass. Denise, sitting at her chrome and steel desk, was silhouetted against a window that took up an entire wall. Danny noticed that her hair was pulled into a soft pony tail instead of the severe bun and that, although she had skillfully applied makeup, there was a bruise darkening her cheek. He again chocked down a spike of impotent anger and focused on the fact that a beautiful woman had asked him a question.

"Miss Evans," Danny started uncertainly, "thank you for seeing me. I…," he hesitated, "…I just wanted,"

Denise interrupted gently, "Denise, please. May I call you, Danny?" She was surprised by her uncharacteristic willingness to be so informal, but for some reason, Danny made her feel comfortable.

Danny smiled a quick, uncertain, smile and ran his hand through his hair again. "Denise," he began again. "I wanted to apologize to you." He stopped and looked at the question in her eyes. "I was completely out of line yesterday. You deserved better. It was not your fault and I, of all people, should know that. I was hoping that you would let me take you to lunch to make up for my big mouth."

Denise continued to look at Danny for a moment longer and she smiled a little, rueful smile. "Thank you, Detective ….I mean, Danny. But you weren't wrong. I should have know better. I knew that Derrick was a bully. I should have packed up and left the first time he hit me, but I kept hoping that he would change and so I stayed.

Danny nodded. He had heard that story countless times before.

"Finally. I had enough," Denise continued – still completely shocked at how honest she was being. "Something inside me snapped and I threw the asshole out. He tried to threaten me with the influence his family had, but by that point, I just didn't care any more. He said that he would get me fired, but I'm too good at my job. We agreed to just divide the assets. I got the house and the car. He could the other car, the vacation house and all the cash. I agreed to no alimony – the sooner I am rid of the jerk, the better I will feel."

She looked at Danny, but only saw compassion in his eyes. Her small smile grew into a warm grin, "So about lunch. I'm starved. Where do you suggest?"

Danny was stunned. He had not expected Denise to agree; he hoped that she would, but was fairly certain that she would not. He thought back to the restaurant he saw down the street. White tablecloths, waiters in tuxedos, and patrons in suits – Denise would be sure to love it. "How about that place down the street," he suggested, cringing inwardly as he realized the hit that his wallet would most likely take. "Francesco's, I think?"

Denise nodded. Why did all men think that they needed to take her to that expensive tourist trap. Derrick liked to go there, but Derrick liked to show off his money. Denise played a hunch.

"Danny, that sounds great. I like Francesco's, but, you know, I'm in a mood for pizza. "I know a place that makes the best pies." She actually laughed at the dubious expression on his face. "Seriously. It's a thin crust, the best tomato sauce you could imagine and lots of mozzarella cheese. The owner will put pepperoni on the pie – but only if you ask very nicely. How does that sound?"

Later, Danny would swear that he could not speak for a minute as he felt like he had to pick up his chin from the floor. By the time he recovered from the surprise of meeting somebody who knew what real pizza was and the fact that there was a place that made in somewhere on this God forsaken island, all he could do was nod.

"Let's go then," Denise smiled as Danny held the door for her. Was it possible? Were there still gentlemen and gentle men?

The place could only be called a dive, Danny thought as he looked at the clapboard shack with a few tables. But somehow this transplant from New Jersey managed to get a real pizza oven and the smells wafting from the open door reminded him of home. He looked at Denise who smiled smugly and took a table. "I probably don't need to ask how you like your pizza," Danny asked with a smile which only widened when Denise shook her head; everybody knew there was only one way to have pizza.

The pie was huge, but between the two of them, Denise and Danny made short work of it, leaving only a few pieces of crust and an occasional drip of cheese.

"So how does an island girl know about real pizza?" Danny asked teasingly.

"Just because I love it here, does not mean I was born here," Denise answered archly. "I'm actually from Hoboken. Grew up there, but fell in love with Hawaii in college. I had to move heaven and earth to be here, but here I am staying."

Danny watched her animated face feeling his heart start to race. "And you, Danny? You don't love it here?"

"I think I am beginning to see the appeal," was Danny's response which brought a blush to Denise's cheeks. "But, the only reason I am here is that this is where my ex-wife is with my daughter, Grace. I will not be away from her. Ever. So this is where I need to be," he finished matter of factly. "I was a detective with HPD, when I met Super Seal," Denise giggled at the reference to who she knew could only be Steve McGarret, "and I was informed that I would be part of his Five-O Taskforce." Denise heard the grumble in her voice, but she also heard the affection and respect. Danny wanted to appear prickly and gruff, but she was beginning to see through his façade.

"I think I had better get back to the office," Denise said reluctantly some time later. "I left the algorithm running as I promised to Officer Grant, and I'm curious to see what has come of it."

Danny nodded and handed her into his car.

As he pulled up to the bank, Danny gathered up his courage and said. "I am hoping that I am not going to let my mouth get away from me again. Is there any other way that I would be able to convince you to have dinner with me sometime?"

Denise felt a tingle of warmth run down her spine. "You just need to ask, Danny," she said gently. "You just need to ask." And with that she exited the car and entered the bank building leaving Danny sitting behind the wheel with a silly grin on his face.

Denise poured herself another cup of coffee and settled in front of her computer. She logged on and started looking at the data generated by the query she had created. Her look became intense and her brows began to knit. "Oh my God," she whispered, as she reached for her phone.


	6. Chapter 6

"I am not sure I get it," Steve said staring at Denise. "Are you saying that somebody is stealing money that is not really there?"

Denise's call brought the entire Five-O team to her office. They were seated around the glass table in her spacious office while a young man sat at her computer typing away with a look of intense concentration on his face.

"Ok," Denise said pulling out a pad of paper. "Let's try it this way." She scribbled on a pad and then turned it so that the team could see. "Assume there is a transaction for $4.52," she said showing them the number. "Everybody sees the four dollars and the 52 cents. What they don't see is that in an electronic bank transaction like some type of transfer or a payment, the actual number is something like..," she scribbled again, "is actually something like $4.52459." She showed them the number. "Basically there are some additional fractions of a cent. The computer automatically rounds up or down according to some very specific rules."

Denise looked around and saw heads nodding. They were tracking with her so far. "The basic rules are simple – same as what we learned in school. If the number after the penny is above a 5 you round up, if its below, you round down. So in this case, the $4.52459 is $4.52; the 0.00459 cents is essentially invisible.

"What happens is that tiny fraction of a penny is taken?" Denise looked around again and smiled at what really was a trick question. "Not much happens. Nobody really notices. Now imagine doing this across all the transactions for a bank every day." Denise let that sink in. "Now imagine doing it across all of the banks in Hawaii." The extent of enterprise was beginning to sink in.

"Any transaction that comes through a Hawaiian bank apparently is eligible. Depending on how long this has been going on, the take would be in the millions of dollars"

"Where does this money go?" Danny asked. "Somebody would catch on eventually."

Denise smiled at Danny. "Since there are so many transactions, in any given case it just looks like a round of error and most likely ignored. This would be incredibly hard to find. The only reason that I even saw it was because of the algorithm that was supposed to look for anomalies. In this case, the anomaly that it found was the fact that all the transactions only had two decimal places, honestly, it was a total fluke. Just dumb luck on my part."

Danny looked at Denise; nothing about this woman could be categorized as dumb.

"As for where the money is going – that is an excellent question. That is what Jeff," Denise nodded to the young man at the computer, "is trying to figure out. He is part of our corporate security team. His programming skills are much better than mine, and he is working on tracking it down."

As if on cue, Jeff looked up from the keyboard. "Uh...Miss Evans," the young man spoke a little tentatively as if unwilling to share bad news. "We may have a problem.

Denise took of her glasses and looked at Jeff. "What's the matter, Jeff? What's happening?"

"The program that has been siphoning off money, it has counter-measures."

"Counter-measures...what do you mean counter-measures?" Danny spoke up. "It can't shoot or blow things up. It's a computer, for God's sake."

Jeff looked at Danny with condensing pity – as if he was a very slow child. "Not those kind of counter-measures. It's code within the program that's designed to discourage any type of scrutiny."

"So basically exactly what we are doing," Danny interrupted.

"What type of counter-measures, Jeff," Denise asked with a smile directed at Danny.

"I'm not entirely sure. It looked like a spike directed at the URL from which the inquiry is coming, but I think I intercepted it because nothing seems to be happening.

Denise nodded. "Ok, Jeff. Thanks. Any luck tracking the money"

"Not yet, Miss Evans. Its pretty well disguised. I will need to do some more work with my equipment. Now that I know what I am looking for, I can find these transactions and can track them."

"Thanks, Jeff," Denise said again as the young man got up to leave.

"How long will this take? How soon will you know where the money is?" Chin asked.

"Don't know," Denise said. "Jeff is good, but I think whoever is doing this is an expert. It could take a while, but I will let you know as soon as I know something."

"Thank you, Miss Evans," Steve said as he and the team rose to leave. Danny lingered behind. Steve looked back at his partner expectantly, but once he caught the look that Danny was giving Denise, he turned and walked out the door, not bothering to hide his smile.

"I think you need protection," Danny said without preamble. "I don't really understand everything about computers, but it sounds like they could find you."

"Thanks, Danny," Denise said, "but you heard Jeff, he stopped it. Nothing happened. Its totally OK. I'll be fine."

Danny did not look convinced, but one look at the determined set of Denise's chin and he knew that this was not an argument that he was going to win. He took a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair. "Ok," he said in surrender. "Do you still have my card?"

Denise rifled through her purse and pulled it out.

"OK," Danny said. "Do me a favor; put my cell number into your fast dial on your phone. That way you can get it if anything happens. Give me your number so that I know its you calling; I'll take your call no matter what. Once that was accomplished, Danny and Denise stood a few feet apart awkwardly looking at each other. "I guess I'll see you," Danny said.

"See you," said Denise.

"I'll call you," Danny said unwilling to leave.

"That sounds good," Denise replied.

"Want to go to dinner, tomorrow night," Danny asked.

"I'd love to, "Denise said through a burbling fit of giggles.

Danny smiled in relief. "OK. I will call you and we'll figure it out." With that he took one more look at Denise and left to join Steve.

Denise worked for a few more hours answering emails and reading through documents. At about five o'clock, she shut down her computer, put it in her bag and headed out. She got into her BMW, put her key into the ignition, turned on the air conditioner and the radio and headed home. She did not notice the large black SUV behind her.

Once out on the freeway, she permitted herself the release of singing loudly to the radio. She was happy and one Detective Danny Williams had something to do with that. She did not notice the same SUV approaching her car from behind.

When the SUV hit Denise's car, she screamed. She tried to swerve to avoid the SUV, but the other driver seemed intent on hitting her. She hit the phone button on her dashboard and gave the voice activated system the fast dial code.

"This is Detective Williams," the reassuring voice came on the line, "Denise, what's going on."

"Danny, my car's been hit. There is an SUV following me and keeps rear ending me. It won't stop and I can't get away," her voice was on the edge of panic as she saw the SUV approaching again even faster than before.

"Oh my God," she cried, "Its going to hit me again. No," she screamed as the SUV drove into her fender sending the car flipping end over end.


	7. Chapter 7

"You OK?", Steve had turned to look at this partner when he heard him say the CIO's name. Now watching the color drain from Danny's face, Steve grew concerned and walked over to stand by his friend's side. "Danny?", he asked again.

"She's in trouble, Steve," Danny's voice had an edge of panic. "Somebody tried to run her off the road. Now I can't reach her." Steve's face clouded with concern that almost matched Danny's.

"Danny," it was Kono's voice. She had overheard the conversation and was quickly typing on her tablet. "EMS and police were dispatched 2 minutes ago based on a call from Onstar. The location is Marker 64 of the Queen Liliʻuokalani Highway."

Danny swallowed the fear that rose up in his throat, almost choking him. "Any injuries or...'" he stumbled on the word, "...fatalities?"

Kono shook her head. "No reports yet."

"I need to get there," Danny said looking at Steve. He desperately needed to be there, to be doing something, to help, to make sure that Denise was OK and safe. He would not have been able to put words to his feelings, even if he had thought about them. What he was feeling was almost instinctual and beyond reason; he needed to get to Denise.

Steve nodded, his eyes full of understanding. Danny saw the look, but could not be bothered interpreting it or what in his own behavior was driving it. He just wanted to get out there. "Call when you know something," Steve said as Danny was running out the door with his keys. "Let us know if you need anything."

Danny gunned the car onto the freeway and raced through traffic with his lights and sirens on. When traffic began to snarl even worse than the usual evening traffic, he knew he was getting close and began to crane his neck to see if he could see ahead, beyond the seemingly unending line of cars. What he was able to see caused his heart to sink.

Smoke. Thick, black, oily smoke. He honked and turned on his siren again. When that did not help, he drove along the embankment. He saw the flares that the officers set up to guide traffic around the debris. He saw broken glass and then pieced of metal; a part of a fender, a door knob, part of a tire.

When he saw it, his heart almost stopped. In the middle of the freeway, with police guiding traffic around it and surrounded by fire trucks and ambulances, he saw Denise's BMW...or what was left of it. The blue car, was laying on its roof. All the windows were shattered and smoke was pouring from inside. The firefighters were still spraying it and the fuel leaking from the cracked gas tank with foam. Several ambulances stood at the ready. He got out of his car, absent-mindedly flashed his badge at the uniforms and walked toward the wreckage. If it was possible, Danny's heart dropped even lower. Where was Denise?

He looked around, turning a full cirlce taking in the scene. His heart was racing with a fear he could not name. "Danny!"

The familiar voice brought him up cold as he turned toward it and saw Denise running toward him. In a moment and without him realizing it, she was in his arms. Her face buried in his shoulder as he held her tightly his cheek resting on the top of her head. At first he thought that she was shaking, but then he realized that he was shaking as well. Why? Fear? Relief? He did not know, and right now did not care. Denise was alive and she was here. She looked awful, bruised all over with a nasty cut on her chin that the paramedics had been trying to cover when she saw him. But she was OK. Danny felt his arms tighten involuntarily even as he felt weak with a wave of relief he could not quite understand.

The first clear memory that Denise had after being hit that last time, was laying down on what turned out to be a gurney. Several faces were floating above her and if she focused she could understand what they were saying. "Vitals are normal. Looks like she's coming to.." A man's voice. "Ma'am..are you OK. Do you know you name.

A flash of irritation, "Of course I do. I'm Denise Evans. The year is 2014 and Barak Obama is President. Can I please sit up?"

A silence ensued that Denise took to be consideration, then the same man, "We'll help you sit up...slowly. Let us know if you feel dizzy or sick."

Denise sat up and for a moment did feel a wash of dizziness, but that was likely because she caught a glimpse of what had happened to her car. "Oh my God...," she whispered.

"Yeah," a female voice. "You were lucky, ma'am. Several off duty Marine's were on their way in to town and they stopped to pull you out and stayed with you until help arrived."

Denise tried to swing her legs over the side of the gurney and found to her relief that although she was sore as hell, everything seemed to work.

She felt a hand, reach for her head and a bright light flashed into her eyes as the man, a paramedic, Denise now realized, checked her for signs for a concussion.

"Pupils are reactive. Patient is conscious and coherent," he reported into his radio.

What the hell happened? Why? All manner of questions were spinning in Denises head. She heard more sirens and turned toward the sound as a Camaro stopped in front of the wreck and somebody got out.

Denise was certain for a few minutes that she did have a concussion as she tried to focus her eyes. It couldn't be...he wouldn't have come all this way...would he?

Then he turned around and she knew for certain.

"Danny!" The cry escaped her lips before she could stop it. The next thing she knew is she was in his arms and he was holding her, his face buried in her hair.


	8. Chapter 8

"You're here," Denise said into Danny's chest. She still sounded dazed.

"Yeah, I guess I am," Danny replied, pulling his hand through his hair in discomfiture. "What the hell happened?" He looked down into her eyes, not yet willing to let go of her.

"I was driving home, and out of nowhere, this black SUV hit me. I thought it was an accident and was ready to pull over to exchange information. Then is backed off and tried to hit me again. That's when I called you..." Denise's voice trailed off as if she was embarrassed.

"You're very lucky," Danny said seriously. "This all could have been much, much worse."

Denise pulled away from Danny and took a long look, over his shoulder, at what remained of her car. If the initial glance frightened her, having the chance to really look at the twisted hulk of still-smoking metal actually made her go weak in the knees.

"Whoa," Danny cried out as he gently grasped her around the waist to keep her from falling. "Maybe you'd better sit down." Denise had not realized that she was leaning against Danny. Her head was spinning. Danny guided her back over to the gurney and the paramedics.

"She needs to go the hospital," the young woman paramedic said with certainty. "We need to make sure that she does not have a concussion...or worse."

"No," Denise mumbled. "I hate hospitals." Catching site of Danny, she tried a different tack. "Please don't let them take me to the hospital...please."

Danny looked at the paramedic, and the concern in her eyes convinced him. "How about I take you myself?" He offered. "No ambulances, no sirens. We'll get you checked out to make sure you're OK and then I'll take you home."

Denise still wanted to argue. All she wanted was to go home, take a hot shower and go to bed, but there was something in the set of Danny's lips and the angle of his shoulders that spoke louder than words – she was not going to win this fight.

"Oh, alright," she agreed with poor grace. She tried to jump off the gurney, lost her balance and would have fallen down had Danny not stepped up to offer her support and help her balance.

He helped her into her car and with the light still going, took off for the hospital.

"Who would do this?" Denise asked. Danny noticed that she was starting to shake as shock and fear replaced the initial numbness. "Why?"

Danny had a sinking feeling that he knew – at least the why.

"Could somebody track you down from that program that you wrote? Isn't that what your tech guy...," Danny searched his memory for the computer geek's name, "...Jeff. Didn't Jeff say he could prevent anybody from finding you?"

Denise took a deep breath. Focusing on problems always made her feel better...more in control...as opposed to her life, she thought with a small smile.

"Actually, what Jeff said was that he was going to try counter measures." She sighed. "Jeff is good. Really good. But the truth is there is always somebody better. They may have been able to still track the program."

"OK, then," Danny said. He was out of his depth on this, and was trying to understand. "How do they get from the program to your SUV?"

Denise shrugged. "They would have been able to trace the program's origination to a URL. Basically an address of the computer. They would not the rough location – maybe the bank building...maybe on which side of the building...," Denise trailed off. If the accident wasn't an accident, how did they...whoever they were...find her?

Danny was already dialing his phone. "Kono? Yeah. Yeah, she's OK. We're on the way to the hospital to have her checked out. Can you do me a favor? Check the cameras on Queen Liliʻuokalani Highway...see if you can find the black SUV. Maybe we can get something from the image." Danny listened for a few more minutes. "O.K. Kono. Thanks. I'll be back as soon as I can."

Danny turned to look at Denise again. Her eyes were closed and she looked pale. "Hey," he said, touching her hand gently, "You OK?"

Denise opened her eyes. She had a little trouble focusing on Danny and her stomach was rebelling over any and all food that she'd had over the last several days.

"I'm not sure," she mumbled. "All of a sudden...,"

"I know," Danny's voice was gentle as his hand wrapped around Denise's. "We'll be at the hospital in a few minutes."

Denise shook her head. "They tried to kill me, Danny. Somebody tried to kill me."

"I'm sorry, Denise," Danny whispered. "Its our fault. Five-O's fault. We never should have asked you..."

"No," Denise managed to sound emphatic. "I want to help. This Wo Fat seems to be a pretty bad guy. If I can help put him in jail...I want to." Denise took a deep breath. "But I'm scared, Danny. I looked up Wo Fat, I saw what he has done..."

Danny's hand tightened reflexively on Denise's hand. Without looking at her. "He will never touch you," Danny grated. "I swear to God. I will keep you safe."

Denise turned to look at the man behind the wheel. Again, she saw the firm set of the jaw and a hardness in the eyes. Somehow, it made her feel very, very safe. Thinking back over the men in her life, Denise realized that her choices in men were not ones who had a focus on protecting or nurturing her. This man, was different. She knew that with a certainty that frightened her.

"I know," she whispered. "I know."

Danny was sitting in the waiting room of the hospital while the doctors were checking out Denise. She had wanted him to go with her, and, to his surprise, wanted to accompany her and to continue to hold her hand. But since they were not family, the doctor pointed to the chairs outside of the examination room which is where he had been sitting, staring at the clock and trying to choke down the cup of hospital coffee.

"Hey," Danny could not help himself and he jumped when he heard Steve's voice. "Sorry," Steve mumbled. "How's she doing?"

Danny shrugged. "She's still in with the doctor. I don't know." He paused for a moment searching Steve's face.

Steve read something in his friend's eyes. Concern was there, but so was something else...Steve identified it as guilt. "None of this was your fault," he told his partner gently, but Danny was having none of it.

"Then whose fault was it?" Danny railed. "We asked her do to this. We put her in harm's way. If Wo Fat is on to her now...," Danny trailed off and Steve interrupted that train of thought.

"He won't get to her," Steve said with absolute conviction. "You'll keep that from happening. You'll protect her." The men exchanged another look and Steve nodded slightly in answer to the unspoken question in Danny's eyes. "Until this is over, you're on protection detail. Where she goes, you go."

Just then the door opened and an orderly wheeled Denise out. She looked tired and still shaken up, but her color had returned and she was not shaking any longer. Danny jumped up and took the handles. "I got it," he said and the orderly nodded. Danny looked down at Denise and smiled, "C'mon Mario Andretti. I'll take you home."

Denise just nodded as Danny pushed her down the hall. Steve watched his friend's receding smile as a small, knowing smile lifted the corners of his lips.


	9. Chapter 9

Danny almost rolled his eyes in frustration; he felt like he was dealing with Grace instead of with a grown woman. "I am not tired and I don't want to go lie down," Denise was adamant.

She admitted to herself that all she had wanted while she was at the hospital was a bath and her bed, but now that she was home, all she could think of was all the work that she had to do. Besides, if she stopped to think, she would start worrying again and she prided herself on keeping her head and never losing her cool.

"C'mon," Danny cajoled as if she was a child. "Go take a shower or a bath and I'll fix you something to eat." "Go on," Danny urged. "I got this."

He sounded so earnest that Denise did not have the heart to continue to argue. And besides a shower would feel wonderful on all the aches and pains that she was now beginning to feel. With a slight node, Denise walked into her bedroom. She grabbed a comfortable pair of shorts and a tee shirt and walked into the bathroom. She debated a long hot soak in the sunken tub, but doing that with Danny in the house somehow seemed indecent, so she opted for a shower.

Denise ran the shower until the water was almost scalding and stepped in. She must have washed her hair five times and soaped and rinsed at least at many. Her mind continued to wonder. What did her little algorithm find that was worth killing for? She really wanted to know – she hated leaving things unresolved.

The water was quite cool by the time Denise stepped out. She wrapped her hair in a large towel, dried off, and dressed. She padded out of the bedroom and into the kitchen. Danny was sitting at the kitchen table. Upon closer examination, Denise saw a plate with what looked like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a glass full of something that looked suspiciously like milk.

"Sorry," Danny said sheepishly, "I'm not much of a cook. But I make a mean PB and J...just ask Grace."

He looked so pleased with himself that Denise laughed out loud.

Danny smiled in satisfaction, "My work here is done. Its good to hear you laugh."

Still smiling, Denise sat down at the table. Looking at the sandwich, Denise realized that she was famished. She bit into the sandwich with gusto. "Its true," she thought to herself, "peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are better when somebody else makes them for you."

"You know," she said to Danny around the bread and fillings in her mouth, "I don't remember ever having a better PB and J sandwich. Thank you."

Danny smiled. Denise really liked how his eyes sort of crinkled.

"You know what would go great with this sandwich," she asked Danny. At this blank look, she continued. "Wine. Red Wine. No really, "she said, suppressing a giggle. "There is grape jelly on this sandwich. Wine is made from grapes. Ergo, the two will go together nicely. And God knows," she added with a dramatic eye roll, "I sure could use a glass after today.

Danny burst into laughter, but then sobered. "No booze for the next forty eight hours – you have a concussion. But," and he got serious and his hand reached out to lightly cover hers, "once you feel better," I will take you to dinner...wine and everything.

Denise looked up, her eyes shining. "Really?

"Really," said Danny as he reached out and used his thumb to remove a smear of jelly from the corner of her mouth. "Now finish your sandwich."

Danny's touch sent electricity coursing through her body. She controlled her racing heart and just satisfied herself with a smile as she reached for a napkin to wipe her face.

Denise genuinely thought that after she had eaten, she would be able to pull out her laptop and work as she did most nights. She had barely finished her milk that she realized her eyes were drifting closed. This was not lost on Danny.

"Get some rest", he said gently.

Denise considered arguing for a moment...but only for a moment.

"Go on," Danny urged. "I'll stay with you." The moment the words were out of his mouth, Danny turned bright red. "What I meant to say was...," he stumbled...

"I know," Denise said gently. She brushed a hand against his cheek softly, as she bent down and brushed her lips against his. "Thank you," she whispered. "For everything."

Denise walked into her bedroom and not bothering to change flopped on the bed. She was asleep in minutes. Her last thoughts as she was drifting off to sleep, brought a smile to her face as she thought about the blond detective in the living room who had promised to keep her safe.

Danny checked the time on his phone. It was 10:30 at night...much too late to call Kono to check to see if she had found out anything about the SUV that had hit Denise. Something was niggling at the back of Danny's mind – something did not make sense, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not put words to the vague feeling of unease. The feeling that he was missing something very basic.

Danny walked around the house checking all the windows and doors. He glanced into the master bedroom, to check on Denise. She was sleeping soundly. Danny smiled and went back to the living room. An afghan hung on the couch and decorative pillows were scattered around. Danny gathered them up and lay down to watch TV. At some point, he drifted off to sleep, still trying to coax the illusive thought forward into his conscious mind.

Danny woke up to the delectable smell of freshly brewed coffee. He had a coffee maker at this house, but truth be told, when it was only him, he made due with instant – this was so much better. He lay still for a moment savoring the aroma then opened his eyes and looked around.

The TV was still on and based on the news broadcast, it appeared to be able 6:15 in the morning. Danny heard sounds coming from the kitchen. Stretching the kinks out of his neck and back, he walked into the kitchen. Denise was up and pottering about. Her hair was loose in a billow of dark curls and she was still wearing the shorts from last night. The bruises that were only a promise last night, had now blossomed into their full glory on her fair skin. She must have heard him because she turned to him and handed him a steaming mug of the wonderful-smelling coffee.

"Good morning," she said. "How do you take your coffee?"

It took Danny a moment..."Just black is fine, thanks," he managed to mutter. After several sips, he started to feel better and more able to form coherent sentences. "I'm going to go into the office. The docs want you to stay home today. I am going to call for a patrol car to be here all day. The officers will check the house every hour."

Denise wanted to argue, but something in the tone of Danny's voice discouraged her.

Danny called dispatch and within twenty minutes, he was speaking to two female officers. A few more minutes to assure Denise that she was in good hands and that he would be back later and Danny was on his way. He contemplated stopping at home to shower and change, but since it was already close to 7 o'clock, he drove straight into the office.

Just as he knew was going to happen, Chin took a look at his rumpled clothing and just raised his eyebrows, but said nothing. Danny was bracing himself for the crap he was going to receive from Steve when his partner saw him un-showered and unshaven. He did not have to wait long. In a few minutes Steve walked into his office. The expression on his face got his attention as it was balanced between anger, outrage, and helpless amusement. "Dano," Steve said, his amusement barely concealed. "We may have a problem."


	10. Chapter 10

Danny was irritated by Steve's apparent good humor; somehow he knew it was at his expense.

"Steve, please." Danny ground out. "I am not in the mood. Just tell me what the hell is going on?"

Steve shifted his stance a bit so that Danny could see over his shoulder and into his partner's office. He saw the backs of two men. One was wearing a suit jacket and the other one a Hawaiian shirt. There was something about the stockier one that Danny recognized. He was busy racking his brain for an identification when the man turned around.

"Oh, Damn," Danny swore when he saw the florid, handsome face of Derrick Akeona. "Who's the suit with him?" Danny asked fearing that he already knew the answer.

"C'mon," Steve said. "I'll introduce you."

Taking a deep breath, Danny followed Steve into the office; he tried to ignore the looks from the rest of the team which ranged from simple curiosity to almost overt amusement. "This is not going to be a good day," Danny thought.

As soon as Danny walked into Steve's office, the man in the suit rose an extended his hand; Derrick remained sitting. "I'm Richard Allen," the suit said. "Of Ginsberg, Smith, Allen, and Mahelona." He paused a moment to let this sink in, then just to emphasize, "I'm than Allen."

Against his will, Danny reached out a hand and shook the lawyer's very soft one. "What can I do for you, Mr. Allen?"

"Well. Its actually what you can do for my client. It appears that there was…," he paused dramatically, "…a misunderstanding.

"Really?" Danny could not help sounding combative. This guy was already getting on his nerves and Derrick…he had momentarily forgotten about Derrick. This day was just getting better and better.

Allen continued unperturbed. "My client," he gestured at Derrick whose smug look made Danny hate him even more. "My client," he repeated, "was assaulted by Detective Williams. He was forcibly removed from his domicile. He was humiliated in front of his peers and was detained unlawfully for forty eight hours." Danny had opened his mouth, but he felt Steve's hand firmly on his shoulder. Something in the hardness of the grasp made Danny shut his mouth with a snap.

Steve stepped forward, his blue eyes blazing. If Danny was annoyed, Steve was down right belligerent. "Mr. Allen," he started, his voice ice cold. "Your client was drunk and trespassing. He battered his ex-wife. He threatened to do her further harm. And then he made the very poor choice of actually attacking a police officer. I would say that your client was lucky that he was taken into custody, permitted to sober up and was promptly released." Steve continued to glare at the attorney, daring him to contradict.

Derrick shifted. "How's Denise doing," he asked. "I heard that she had a little accident."

Allen threw a look a Derrick. "Mr. Akeona, I would suggest that you refrain from speaking at this time." Derrick glared, but subsided.

"Commander McGarret," Allen continued with exaggerated reasonableness. "I realize that you would like to cover for your officer, but the truth remains, that such charges, whether true or not," he permitted himself a knowing smirk, "would not reflect well on Five-O. At this point, your reputation is not exactly sterling and I am not certain that the governor would like to receive notification of further complaints."

Steve made a move toward the man his larger bulk actually causing the man to step backwards. His voice, however remained deathly calm. "I'm sorry Mr. Allen," Steve said with painful politeness, "are you threatening me and my team?"

Allen, having regained some of his equilibrium retorted, "I do not threaten. Ever. I was merely attempting to explain the current situation to you so that you may properly weigh the options that are open to you."

"Options?" Steve's voice was completely flat.

"My client was at his house…"

"Actually the house now belongs to his ex-wife," Danny interrupted. "I believe this was made final in the divorce settlement."

Allen continued as if he had not heard. "My client was at his house to claim certain property that his wife…,"

"Ex-wife," Danny corrected.

This time Allen condescended to agree, "…that his ex-wife has been keeping from him. All he wishes at this time is to collect those items. If you would see fit to assist him in this, I am sure we would be able to lay this entire misunderstanding to rest."

This time Danny got in ahead of Steve. "So you are not threatening Five-O. You are actually trying extortion instead. How does that work with your oath to uphold the law?"

"Do not presume to tell me my job," Allen sneered at Danny attempting to look down on the shorter man. Danny being used to such a ploy ignored him and did not give ground.

"We will not interfere in any divorce proceedings," he said firmly. "If Mr. Akeona needs to get something from Miss," he stressed the word staring into Akeona's eyes with his own eyes hard and cold as sapphires, "Evans' house, I know that there is a process to make that happen." He returned Allen's sneer with interest. "You're a lawyer. I'm sure you can figure it out."

"Now gentlemen," Steve's voice did not welcome any debate, "I believe we are finished. Detective Williams and I have a busy day."

Allen and Akeona both rose to leave. "I do think that you are making a huge mistake Commander," Allen said. "This could be so easily resolved if you would only be reasonable."

"I believe I have been reasonable," Steve responded. Nobody could miss the threat in his words and his voice. "If I had been any less reasonable, I would have your client up on charges and there would already be a call to the governor and the State Bar about your behavior here today. I think the best thing is for both of you to get the hell out of here and we can lay this entire misunderstanding to rest." The last words were ground out between clenched teeth as Steve threw the attorney's words back at him.

"Very well, Commander," Allen said lightly as if the entire discussion was a meaningless chat on a golf course. "Mr. Akeona, I believe we are finished here. If you are ready to go."

Derrick rose, albeit a bit unsteadily causing both Steve and Danny to wonder if he had been drinking again. However, instead of following his lawyer to the door, Akeona turned to Danny. He approached him in what would have been a threatening manner, if he was not weaving and seemed to have trouble keeping his balance. "You think she is so innocent," he growled. "So clean. Perfect. Did nothing wrong…ever. Ask her….," his eyes met Danny's challengingly. "Ask her about the inquiry into her breach of her vidu…," he stopped to focus, "…her fidacia…"

"Her fiduciary duty," Allen finished for him in some exasperation.

When Akeona saw the blank look on Danny's face, he smiled maliciously. "So she didn't tell you everything, did she? Ask her. Ask her about the inquiry into her failure to prevent the security breach last year. The one that cost the bank two million dollars. Ask her how she is still being investigated as a suspect in the embezzling of this money. Ask her about the disciplinary action currently planned for her." The look on his face was triumphant. The look that Danny desperately wanted to wipe off his face – with fists if necessary.

With one more self-satisfied look at Danny and Steve, Allen made a cursory little bow while not quiet clicking his heels together. "Have a good day, gentlemen," he said as he walked out.

Akeona followed him, but just before he exited the door of Steve's office, he turned once more and mouthed, "Ask her," before pivoting and walking away.


	11. Chapter 11

"Dano," Steve started as he saw the look on his partners face as he watched the retreating backs of the two men. "Dano. The guy is full of crap. He was…,"

Danny cut Steve off with a raised hand and a look of such stark disappointment and sadness that Steve, rarely at a loss for words, shut up.

"Its OK," Danny said, although his tone indicated that it was anything but OK. "Denise does not have to tell me anything. She doesn't owe me an explanation." Danny now just wished that he could believe it. He would just have to bury himself in his work and not think about it. Not think about the fact that Denise lied to him…not think about feeling betrayed… not think about the fact that he had actually cared for her and that she had used him like so many others. Danny was deep into his dark, brooding thoughts. He was both feeling sorry for himself and getting angrier and angrier at Denise.

The day crept by at a snail's pace. He had spent the better part of it catching up on paperwork, which left his mind free to dwell on his hurt feelings and permitted him to continue to wind himself up. By the time he and Steve needed to go and question a suspect, he was spoiling for a fight.

The suspect in a series of thefts was a local petty criminal named Kahikina. Steve and Danny converged on him in the interrogation cell where the man sat cuffed to a chair. Small and skinny, his hooked nose made him look like a rat and the small, dark eyes which rapidly moved from Steve to Danny and back again only reinforced the perception. "Look, Brah," he whined, "I don't know nothing. I don't know what you're talking about. I didn't steal nothing. You can't prove nothing."

Steve looked at the little man with a mixture of disgust and pity. The truth was, Five-O had no interest in him. They wanted his boss who was involved with the Yakuza on the island, bit they needed to get to him first. Steve took a deep breath, "Kahikina. We know you had no choice. Just tell us who ordered the thefts and you can go. It'll be our secret. No one will know the information came from you."

The rat faced little man continued to whine. "He'll kill me, Brah. I ain't done nothing wrong. Least you can do is cover some of my ongoing expensed if you want me to talk." The man stopped his litany of excuses long enough to check the reactions of the two cops questioning him to see if anything he'd said gained any traction. Steve was standing calmly with his arms crossed, but Danny was pacing from one side of the room to the other, hands in pockets to hide the clenching and unclenching of his fists. "Brah," Kahikina directed the next exhortation to him. "You get it, right? You know I can't just roll on my boss. Tell him," he indicated McGarret. "Tell him to get off my case."

Something about the man just set Danny off. Moving faster than Steve had ever seen him move, Danny had the small man by the front of his shirt, physically lifting him up out of his chair. "Listen to me you little punk. Tell us what we want to know," he snarled, "or I swear, I will drop you in the deepest, darkest hole that I can find."

Steve stared at his friend and partner in disbelief; in all the years that they had worked together, he had never seen Danny act that way before. Steve moved quickly to intervene. "Danny," he said and when his partner did not seem to hear him, he repeated it more loudly, "Danny!" He also put a hand on his partner's shoulder and only then did Danny react by releasing the man who plopped down into his chair. Steve looked at Kahikina and said, "Excuse us. We'll be right back. Come on, Danny. We need to talk." Steve did not take his hand off his friend's shoulder until they were outside. "What the hell is wrong with you," he hissed as he turned his friend around.

"Wrong with me," Danny's eyes were blazing with anger. "It seems to work for you, so I thought I'd give it a try." Danny was feeling belligerent and Steve took a deep breath and stepped away.

"Danny," he said with a sigh. "Go home. Talk to Denise. Get your head on straight. Wo Fat is still out there, we have the Yakuza staking their claim to territory and then whatever this is with Denise and the bank; I need your head in the game."

Danny was about to argue, but something about the look in Steve's eyes, made him draw a deep breath, give himself a visible shake and not his head. "Ok," he said resignedly.

"Go talk to her," Steve said, his voice gentling. "Find out what is going on. Giver her a chance."

Again, Danny just wanted to argue, and again he took a deep breath, nodded, turned on his heel and headed to the parking lot.

Denise had been trying to work for several hours, but it was challenging with the police officers constantly moving about her house. They were perfectly nice and very kind, but their presence was a constant reminder of how close she had come to...her mind shied away, but she forced herself to think it...she had almost died yesterday. She almost died and neither she nor Danny thought that it was an accident.

She missed Danny. His presence was a comfort and his humor kept her mind off things.

Her phone rang and she grabbed for his hoping that it was Danny.

"Miss Evans," a familiar voice on the line.

"Hi Jeff," she said trying to hide her disappointment.

"Sorry to bother you. We all wanted to make sure that you were OK.

"I'm fine, Jeff. Thank you," she said. "I am hoping that they will let me go back to work tomorrow if I rest today."

"That's good, Miss Evans. I wanted to show you what I figured out about the algorithm.

"Can you tell me, Jeff? I'm very curious."

"Its sorta hard to explain. I really need to show you. These guys...WOW. I thought I was smart. But whoever is doing this… oh man, I'd like to meet them." Jeff stopped, embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Miss Evans…I didn't mean…"

Denise smiled at the excitement in the young man's voice. "I know Jeff," she reassured the young man. "I get it and I'm intrigued." She stopped and thought for a minute, "Jeff? Do you think this has anything to do with..." She was interrupted by the door opening and Danny walking in. Something in his face drew her attention immediately "Jeff, I'll call you later."

"Ok, Miss Evans. Take care. Bye." The young man said

Denise hung up her cell and ran to Danny. She was hoping for a smile and maybe even a hug and was brought up short when she saw the ice cold hardness in his blue eyes.

"When were you going to tell me?", he practically snarled at her.


	12. Chapter 12

Danny watched as Denise's face went through several changes in a few moments. From happiness in seeing him to surprise to anger. Danny's anger started to dissipate and he started to feel sheepish as he saw Denise sport a scowl that was as black and fierce as his must have been. She stood in the middle of the hallway, her arms akimbo, "Well, it you can enlighten me on what I was supposed to tell you," she growled in fair imitation of Danny, "I am sure I can provide an answer."

Danny drew a deep breath and realized that he was no longer angry. "I'm sorry," he said. "I just don't like surprises. Why didn't you tell me about the fact that there is action to remove you as CIO? Didn't you think that this was important."

Denise stared hard at Danny for a few moments, then she sighed, turned around, walked over to where several decanters stood and poured herself a generous measure of scotch. "That motion from the board has been a part of my life for the last eighteen months," she said resignedly. "It had fallen into the background. I don't even think about it anymore."

"Why don't you tell me about it," Danny said. He resisted the urge to sit next to her.

"Joseph Akeona sits on the Board of Directors of the several banks," Denise said, "including First Hawaiian." At Danny's look of recognition, she smiled ruefully, "Yes. That Akeona. Derrick's father." A slight shake as if to rid herself of bad memories. "Akeona senior did not take well to the fact that I filed for divorce. The fact that his son tried to beat me was irrelevant – I was supposed to be the good little wife and help Derrick with his career. Imagine how thrilled he was when I got the CIO position that was earmarked for Derrick." Denise could not surprise a slightly malicious grin.

"How'd you manage that," Danny asked.

"I interviewed and I was a much better candidate." Denise did not waste time with false modesty.

"I thought that Derrick was over it. He never really wanted the job anyway. He much rather "consult"," Denise made air quotes with her fingers, "and spend as much time as he can drinking and partying and spending his Daddy's money. But Akeona senior took it personally and was determined to have me ousted."

"Can he do that?" Danny asked. "For no reason?"

"Well. From the perspective of the Board, it may not be for no reason," Denise admitted. "About a year ago, there was a nasty computer virus that infected many of the financial institutions. The Feds think that it came from China, but they are not sure. This thing was awful. The worst one I ever saw. We tried to be prepared, but the defenses were not perfect. The bank lost about $10 millon." Danny Whistled. "Realistically, given that we have almost half a billion dollars worth of transactions, that's not bad. Many banks lose that in errors over a year. Insurance covered it all and no negligence was found. In fact, the steps we took to minimze damage and loss are now seen as the gold standard in cyber security."

"So what's the problem?" Danny was confused.

"Akeona Senior. That's the problem." Denise's voice was flat. "He is determined to have me removed. He is a very influential board member. He complained to the board saying that even though our defense measures were exemplary, I should never have permitted the breach to happen." Denise sighed heavily. "God only knows. Maybe he's right. Akeona's been working on getting a vote of no confidence against me. Believe it or not, whats' happening to me now, would actually help him."

"Somebody is trying to hurt you. How can that help Akeona?"

"The board hates controversy and publicity. All this can create publicity about me and that will be the trigger for Akeona to say that what is going on in my life is damaging the bank's reputation." She closed her eyes. "All this may actually be more damaging than the security breach."

"OK." Danny said, all anger forgotten. "So lets assume Akeona gets you removed. Who really benefits? I get that Akeona gets some sort of satisfaction, but is he clearing the place for Derrick? Will Akeona place his son into this position?" Denise shook her head.

"Its not for Derrick. As much as he is a bully and a jerk, he is also very smart. But his skills are not in technology. He is more about sales and deal making. Being behind the scenes is not his style. He'd need to be the center of attention." She stopped to consider further. "No. Akeona will not do that. There has to be somebody else. Somebody who can give him something."

"Who?", Danny persisted.

A small sly smile crept across Denise's lips. "Got a tuxedo?", she asked. Her smile got wider with Danny's surprised nod of affirmation. "Good. Be here tonight at six thirty and I'll actually introduce you to the candidates."


	13. Chapter 13

Danny swore under his breath as he stood in front of his mirror and attempted to tie his bow tie. Rachel had made him buy the tuxedo when they were still married; he hated it then and he hated it now. In fact, he hated it even more right about now since Rachel had always tied his bow tie. It took Grace and a YouTube tutorial, but finally he was ready.

Denise was on the phone when she heard the knock. "Jeff," she said and then repeated it more firmly - she could not fault the young man for his passion for his job, but he did tend to ramble on. "I get it...I do. I will be in early tomorrow morning and you can show me the algorithm. I am sure that you are totally right and we will catch up tomorrow. I have no doubt that you are right and this will help us track down the thief. Yes, Jeff, I'm sure. Now, hang it up and go home. This will keep for a couple of hours. Yes, Jeff. Have a good night." Smiling, Denise turned off her phone. Jeff was a good kid, but he really needed to get a life.

She briskly walked to the door and opened the door. She did not mean to gasp. They say that every man looks good in a tuxedo. Danny looked beyond good – Denise's heart beat a little faster and she could not help but stare. Her eyes traveled up from the well-polished shoes, to the well fitted shirt and jacket and finally to the face. That was when she noticed Danny's eyes and the intensity she saw made her blush and turn away.

At the moment that Denise opened the door, Danny found that he had forgotten how to breathe. Denise was wearing a red cocktail dress with a low neckline that just cupped her breasts and emphasized her small waist. In her fancy heels, she still barely reached to his shoulder. Her hair was pulled up into some type of up do with several bits of hair artfully falling to frame her face. Her glasses were gone so he had the perfect view of her amazingly beautiful eyes.

"You look amazing," he managed to breathe out and was rewarded with a luminous smile and a flush.

"Thank you," she said as she stepped outside. "Can we take your car?" she asked, "mine has seen better days."

With a jolt Danny remembered the completely demolished Mercedes SUV and his heart skipped a beat as he recalled the abject terror he had felt when he thought that Denise may have been hurt...or worse. Danny actually shuddered slightly, but luckily Denise did not seem to notice. "My car it is," Danny said with a smile as he helped her in.

"So where are we going?" Danny asked as he pulled out of the driveway.

"Four Seasons, Ko Olina," Denise responded. "It's a business reception. A meet and greet for banking professionals. All the candidates for the position of CIO will be there and you can make your own decisions." Danny spared her a glance as he pulled his eyes away from the road briefly to look at her. He was sure he had heard dry amusement in her voice and there definitely appeared to be a slightly amused cast to her mouth.

"Oh boy," Danny breathed as he focused back on the road.

They arrived at the hotel in the gathering dusk. The Valet took the car and helped Denise out. She led Danny through the hotel and to the elevator which took them to the roof top ball room. While they were not the last to arrive, the room was already somewhat crowded with ever-changing small groups of talking people. The waiters were circulating with trays of champagne and various appetizers to ensure the conversations and good humor continued to flow.

Denise reached over and deftly grabbed two glasses from a tray. She handed one to Danny who smiled and shook his head patting a spot under his arm where his service weapon was holstered. "Thanks, but I'm still working."

Denise smiled at him and set one glass down, sipping delicately at the other one.

"And here comes Contestant Number One," Denise whispered wryly into Danny's ear. He looked up to see a tall, blond man in an impeccable tuxedo approaching.

"Denise," the man said with, what Danny thought, was a very high-born English accent, "How are you? I'd heard about the accident. Are you OK?" He reached out to embrace Denise and she willingly let him kissing him on both cheeks.

"Nigel. It is so good to see you. Thank you for asking. I was a little shaken up, but I'm OK." She turned a dazzling smile on Danny, "Thanks to Detective Williams. Nigel Hamilton-Smythe meet Detective Danny Williams."

"Detective," the British man acknowledges. "Welcome. He reached out his hand and Danny wondered if that was the man's natural grip or if he was trying to squeeze his hand into pulp. Danny squeezed just as hard. In a moment, the man nodded politely and left.

"Nigel really wants the job and would actually be good at it. He just needs his citizenship and security clearances," Denise commented.

She made the rounds with Danny following with an asinine smile plastered on his face. What he saw were ridiculously well to do people trying to impress other ridiculously well to do people. For some reason it annoyed him and put him on edge.

Denise was in a cluster of several men, who all were smiling at her. Danny fought down an irrational anger and the desire to punch their teeth in. Still smiling, Denise walked over with one of the men. "Detective Williams, this is Jonathan Abrams. He's currently Chief of Digital Security at Alexander and Baldwin." Danny nodded as Denise named the largest ocean transport company on the islands. He examined the man who was tall, fit, and handsome and wearing a watch that cost more than Danny made in a year. Danny hated him immediately for that and for the way he was looking at Denise.

Abrams nodded politely, managed a few inane pleasantries and wondered off to rejoin a group of young women in short, tight dresses.

"The CIO roll would be a feather in his cap," Denise said. "He would owe Akeona big time and Akeona is very good about collecting."

Denise flitted through several more groups and in each group, it seemed to Danny that the men's stares became more and more brazen. He felt as if he was starting to lose control of his temper again. Did she bring him here to humiliate him? To show him what he could never be? All these men in their perfectly tailored suits, their $500 shoes, their watches that could put Gracie through college. Again, Danny wondered what Denise was playing at and then he wondered even more why he should care.

Just then Denise walked up on the arm of a man who could only be described as distinguished. Tall and tan with striking silver hair. This one definitely was looking down Denise's dress and Danny heard himself emit a growl. "This is Edward Eddington. He's currently CIO over at Bank of the Orient." Danny tried to be civil and reached out a hand. "Edward," Denise said, "This is Detective Williams."

Eddington spend a long time looking Danny over until finally reaching out his hand to Danny. "Detective." Even Denise looked up at the venomous contempt in the man's voice.

Danny was now seething. "He's an ass, Danny," she said. "He's the one that Akeona really wants since they go way back. It'd be like having a clone behind the CIO's desk. He thinks a great deal of himself," Denise continued to talk until she tool one look at Danny and the words froze on her lips.

"Let's go," were the only two words that Danny uttered as he turned and left leaving Denise to chase after him.

Danny let the valet hand Denise into the car and he stared straight ahead the entire way home. Denise tried to engage Danny to figure out what was wrong, but the hard look in his eyes and the hard set of her lips quickly quieted her.

Danny drove up the driveway and while he wanted to leave, some deeply ingrained instinct made him walk around and help Denise out. He followed her into the house and once the door shut, Denise turned on him.

"What in the hell is wrong with you?" She was so angry she almost hissed the words.

Danny had removed his tie in the car and now he took off his jacket and flung it across the room. "What was that all about?" he yelled. "Was that fun for you? Showing me off to your rich friends as if I was some exotic pet? Did you want to show me the circles in which you move? Did you want me to be impressed?" he paused to take a breath and spoke more quietly, "Or were you trying to humiliate me?"

Denise stared at him in shock. She opened and closed her mouth a few times. "Danny," she almost whispered. "You're an idiot."

Danny was brought up short as he stared at the woman now standing in front of him.

"Do you think I care about the suits or the shoes or the watches? Do I think I care about those men whose biggest decision is which tie to wear or which cufflinks to use? Do you really think so little of me?" tears came to her eyes. "I needed you to see the competition so that you would understand what I was up against, but there is one thing you don't seem to get."

Danny continued to stare at her. Barely breathing. Barely daring to hope.

"There is only one man that I want," Denise whispered. "Only one man with whom I am falling in love, and he is standing in front of me."

Danny never could remember moving, but somehow he had closed the space between them. Moving on instinct alone, his arms went around the woman and his mouth crashed down on hers.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Note that this chapter will have adult scenes that may be somewhat graphic. Read at your own risk

Denise felt the breath rush out of her lungs as Danny pulled her toward him and brought his lips down on hers. They stood alone in the hallway letting the kiss deepen. Emotions and feelings washed over Denise; she was stunned by the speed and the passion of Danny's reaction; she had not believed that he cared for her – at least not as much as she was growing to care for him. Standing there, wrapped in his arms, Denise felt a contentment that had been long missing from her life.

Her back against the wall in the hallway, Denise felt herself melt into Danny's body even as her arms went around his neck. Danny played his tongue over Denise's lips, seeking entry, and she parted her lips allowing his tongue to enter and mate with her. Danny groaned softly as he felt his body react to the new sensations. In some deep parts of his head and heart, he had dreamed about this, but he had never even allowed himself to hope that it would be possible. With Denise's words, it was as if some dam had broken, releasing feelings he had not permitted himself to feel; he was falling in love with Denise – for her brains, her courage, and the moxie that, he always believed, only girls from New Jersey possess.

Reluctantly, Danny broke the kiss and looked into Denise's eyes. He smiled sheepishly and ran a hand through his already tousled hair. "Do I need to apologize?" he asked.

Denise looked into Danny's blue eyes and smiled a slow, sultry smile. "Only if you stop doing what you were doing." She stepped closer to Danny and renewed the kiss. Her heart was pounding and she was awash in sensations and emotions. Her kisses were hungry and passionate and Danny's desire grew. He buried his fingers into Denise's hair brushing the pins out and capturing the coil as it began to unwind and burying his face in the sweet-smelling, silky tresses. Denise rested her head on Danny's chest taking in his scent and listening to his heart beat.

Slowly, as if frightened, Denise reached and began to unbutton Danny's shirt. Danny let out a breath as he felt the feather light fingers working down his chest. He closed his eyes and felt the sensations course through him. Denise removed the shirt and walked around behind Danny to pull it off, permitting it to drop on the floor. She walked close to Danny, embracing him from the back, with her hands stroking his chest and stomach. She felt, more than heard the moan that vibrated through Danny. She worked her way to the waistband of his trousers, but stopped there, teasing and promising more.

Danny took Denise's right hand and pulled her around so that she faced him again. He bent down claiming her lips and tasting her again. His hands were working on the button and zipper of the dress. When both were loosened, Danny slid the dress off her shoulders and followed the contours of her body as he guided the silk dress to the ground.

Denise gasped as the combination of the strong hands and the soft, cool silk, sliding over her hot skin. She stepped out of the dress and shoes. "Oh, God," Danny breathed looking at the woman. She was wearing a black bra and panty set and set off her creamy skin and curvy body. Denise smiled and walked toward him. Danny took her in his arms and held her close, enjoying the feel of his skin against hers. Soon that was not enough and he bent down and kissed first one breast then the other. He slowly removed the bra and took the breasts in his hands, rubbing the nipples with his thumbs until they became hard. He heard Denise gasp and moan in pleasure. He bent down and flicked his tongue over the hard nubs eliciting a cry of pleasure. He could not help himself, and looked at Denise with a slight smug smile.

Damn, but the man was handsome and skilled. Denise was having trouble holding on to thoughts now, but the one that was clear was that Danny was driving her crazy and that she wanted him very much. It was time, she decided to take some initiative.

Denise took Danny's hands, kissed the palms of both and placed them on her hips. Danny pulled her to him and kissed her on the lips. While he was so engaged, Denise made short work of the zipper on his trousers and reached down to take his erection into her hands. Her touch completely electrified Danny and she heard him growl deep in his throat even as he continued to kiss her. She gently moved her hands feeling the entire length, watching Danny's eyes close with pleasure. "Oh God, Denise," the man whispered, reaching for her again and crushing her lips with his.

Danny could not help moving his hips in time with the movement of Denise's hands on his penis. The waves of pleasure were intense and he was completely lost. He then felt something else – her warmth rubbing against him as she removed the remainder of his clothes. A loud groan escaped his lips as he opened his eyes and looked at the temptress in his arms. With one motion, he removed her panties and dropped to his knees. He kissed the triangle between Denise's legs feeling the damp curls. He went lower and Denise moaned and leaned against the wall for support as he kissed her heat and used his tongue to stroke her sensitive nub. Denise gasped at the sensations and almost permitted herself to lose control. She twined her fingers in Danny's hair and the man stopped and looked up.

"Come with me," she whispered, reaching out her hand.

Dannyroseand took the proffered hand. However, Denise did not lead him to the back of the house where her bedroom was, but to the living room where the wall to wall and floor to ceiling window looked out onto the backyard with the large swimming pool. Denise pressed a button on the wall and the window – or rather the door slid open. The night was warm and a fragrant, cool breeze was blowing off the ocean. "Come on," she whispered again, "nobody will see or hear us. I promise."

At this point, Danny could refuse Denise nothing, so he followed her. She led him to the pool and down the several steps. The water was several degrees cooler than body temperature and deliciously cooled their heated skin while the swirling water teased their arousal rather than diminishing it.

When both of them were in the pool, Danny reached out and took Denise's hand, pulling and turning her toward him, lowering his head for another kiss. Danny knew that he could not wait much longer and by the look in Denise's eyes, neither could she. With a slight shift, Danny entered Denise and the two remained standing in the pool connected in the most intimate way possible. Danny started moving slowly and gently.

Denise was lost in sensation. The coolness of the water, the heat of their bodies. Her breath was coming in small gasps as she moved against Danny. Danny cupped her face and kissed her. His need for her was growing even as he moved and he found himself moaning as they moved together. Denise's nails raked Danny's back gently as she buried her face in his neck. She felt herself on the edge and then she lost control, feeling like she was shattering into a million pieces.

Danny felt the change as Denise tensed around him and then began to shake. He held her, stroking her back and kissing her, while she climaxed. Seeing her – eyes half closed, lips partially opened, a flush creeping up her face, and water glistening on her hair and skin, pushed Danny over the edge. His release was complete as he breathed his moans into Denise's mouth.

The two stood together with the water swirling around them, just holding each other while heart rates slowed and breathing subsided. Danny again kissed Denise and led her out of the pool. He found folded towels on a shelf by the pool and wrapped Denise and then himself as they sat together enjoying the night.

Eventually, they felt the need to move and walked together into the bedroom. There was no need for modesty now – after what they had shared so they showers together in the luxurious master bath and fell exhausted into bed. They fell asleep with Danny's arms around Denise. Although neither said it, they both felt happier, more hopeful and, in Denise's case, safer than either had felt in a long time.

The jangle of a cell phone, jerked Danny awake. Groggily, he reached for the noisy device on his nightstand, smiling as he felt Denise shift to be closer to him. The caller was Kono. "What's up," Danny asked, feeling more jovial than he usually did in the mornings.

"Danny. Where are you?" Kono was all business.

Danny demurred on the answer instead asking again if something was going on.

"HPD found a body. It looks like a professional hit."

"OK," Danny said, still unsure what is had to do with him of Five-O. As he listened to Kono's response, his face became grim.

Denise stirred and opened her eyes. When she saw Danny on the phone, she looked at him with sleepy curiosity.

"Kono," Danny said. "I'll be there as fast as I can. I just need to take care of something first." HE listened again. "Yeah. I know. I'll take care of it. I'll be there within the hour, if not sooner." He hung up the phone and looked over at Denise who smiled brightly at him.

Danny took a deep breath. "Denise. Honey. I need to tell you something…"


	15. Chapter 15

Danny scowled darkly as he pulled up in front of the First Hawaiian building. Not surprisingly, it was surrounded by police cars with their lights on. Danny cringed as he saw the Coroner's Van pull up and Dr. Bergman and an assistant step out. His face softened as he looked over at the passenger sitting next to him.

Denise sat ram rod straight next to Danny. She was dressed in jeans and a tee shirt. Her lips were pressed firmly together and large sunglasses covered her eyes. Danny knew, that those glassed hid eyes red and swollen from crying. He had hated having to tell her – hated watching the smile fade and her face crumble when he told her that her young tech genius, that Jeff...Danny sadly realized that he did not even know the kid's last name... had been found dead in his office.

Danny hated delivering the news of a friend's or loved ones death, but to have to also say that it was murder, made things so much worse. He held Denise as she sobbed. She was the one who had hired the kid right out of college. She was mentoring him and had hoped he would achieve great things both at First Hawaiian and beyond. Now she was faced with the fact that Jeff Na'aleyu, aged 27, would never even see his next birthday.

"Itsall my fault, isn't it," she asked as she wept into Danny's chest. "Its because of this algorithm? Because he found something?"

Danny did not want to lie to her. "Of course its not your fault. Whoever killed Jeff is involved in this...up to his eyeballs. He is committing a federal crime, Denise. This has nothing to do with you."

"I should have gone to him last night, Denise sighed. Maybe then..."

"Please. Don't," Danny whispered, crushing her to him. "If you were there, you might be dead too." Then more quietly. "I don't want to lose you."

These words seemed to bring Denise back. She wiped her eyes and took a deep breath. "I'll go with you." When Danny started to shake his head, "You'll need somebody to identify the...," she paused, swallowing hard...,"identify Jeff." Danny wanted to argue but she had a point. He nodded. "And you'll need somebody to figure out what exactly he was working on."

The steel in her voice and her back discouraged any more arguments and Danny had to admit that he felt better having her nearby. Too many things were happening too quickly for him to not know where Denise was. On his way to the crime scene, Danny called the Five-O office.

"Hawaii Five-O, Detective Grant speaking," Danny cringed a little. He knew that Aly desperately wanted to be out on a case, not at the office. He would try to talk to Steve about this. He thought he understood why Steve had not yet cleared Aly for duty, but she was fully capable and they could really use an extra set of hands. However, for now, he needed her at the office.

"Hey Aly. Its Danny. Can you please run a couple of back ground checks for me?" Danny gave her the names of the three men he met last night. "They all seem to be model citizens and completely above board, but they all have a stake in Denise losing her position so please see if something catches your attention."

"Will do, Danny." Alyssa said.

"Hey," Danny said before he hung up. "Are you holding up OK?"

"Sure," Alyssa said. "I just need to be out there with you guys, not stuck in the office."

"I know," Danny said. "Just try to be patient for a little while longer.

Aly hung up the phone and sighed. She had been patient for a long time. What was wrong with her that Steve would not let her back in the field? Had she disappointed him in some way? Did he not think her capable? She had tried talking to him about itafewtimes, but he would get this strange, almost hunted look and would change the subject. Alyssa shook her head in frustration. Somehow she would need to get through to him...or she would ask for a transfer. She did not sign up to be a desk jockey. She looked at the list in her hand, turned to her computer and started to work

Danny walked Denise to her office and left her with a uniformed HPD officer. "I will come and get you once things are ready," he promised. What he was thinking is that perhaps they would be able to clean up Jeff and the scene just a little to minimize what Denise would have to see.

What Danny found was every bit as bad as he had thought it would be. Jeff was slumped over with his head on his desk. The gun shot had come from behind, entering the back of his skull causing the high-velocity splatter that covered the walls. Blood covered his computer and dripped off the desk in slow viscous drops.

Max and an assistant were maneuvering the body onto a gurney and into a body bag.

"Definitely looks like a professional hit," Steve said as he came to stand by Danny. "The question is why kill this kid? What'd he ever do to deserve it?" Danny looked over at his partner and saw Steve's eyes hooded. More than almost anybody Danny knew, Steve hated loss of life; especially when it was as meaningless, violent and cruel as this one seemed to be.

Danny shook his head. "I think its related to this program that is stealing money. I think that's a fair bet." Steve nodded his agreement. "I'd hate to think that he was somehow involved in this. I just don't think..." Danny did not finish. He would hate having to tell Denise that Jeff was involved.

"OK." Steve said, all business again. "Let's not speculate anymore. What do we have?" He turned to the medical examiner. "Doc?"

"According to his liver temperature, he died sometime between seven and ten last night," Max said.

"Sometime after he called Denise and told her he had found something," Danny mused.

"Was it important enough to get him killed?" Steve asked.

"Commander! Detective Williams! I think I found something." Max's raised voice and excited manner interrupted and the two men turned toward the medical examiner and the remains of the young was holding Jeff's hand and working to pry open the fingers. "Quite frequently, the rigor in the hands is the last to dissipate," Max ground out as he continued to work gently but diligently so as not to break the fingers. "Got it," Max stated triumphantly as he handed the Stick Drive to Steve.

Holding the item carefully between two gloved fingers, Steve looked at it intently. "Whatever this is, it sure the hell wasn't worth dying for."

"Actually, Jeff very much believed it was." The female voice behind them caused both Steve and Danny to turn suddenly in surprise. Denise stood just outside the door, the uniformed office right behind.

"Denise," Danny began, but something in her eyes stopped him.

"I know, Danny and I'm sorry. I know I promised to stay in my office." She was simultaneously trying to look away from the gruesome scene, while at the same time trying to get a glimpse of Jeff. "Its just...I just got an email...I think its important" Three sets of eyes looked at her expectantly. "Its from Jeff."


	16. Chapter 16

Danny and Steve looked up at Denise in bemusement "Are you saying that this is not Jeff," Steve asked in surprise as his eyes traveled from the body to Denise's face and back.

Taking a deep breath, Denise walked around to where the body was laying on the gurney. She noticed that Danny walked over to stand behind her; not touching her, but providing his presence and strength as support. She looked down and gasped as she truly saw the ruined face for the first time. "No," she whispered. "This is Jeff." Denise continued to look, unable to look away. Unconsciously, she reached out to touch Jeff's left cheek, one of the few features that had not been mangled by the bullet. "Oh, Jeff," she murmured. "I am so sorry." She felt Danny gently touch her back and drew comfort from that contact.

"Please," Dr. Bergman said, "Do not touch him. There may be trace evidence."

"Sorry," Denise muttered.

"How about we go to your office to talk," Steve suggested gently, hoping to keep the already distraught woman from becoming more upset.

Gratefully, Denise nodded and the three of them headed back toward the Corporate offices on the other side of the building.

"So what are we looking at," asked Steve as the three of them reconvened in Denise's office and she opened the email. "All I am seeing are a lot of random numbers."

"I'm not sure yet," Denise said, concentrating intently on the screen and chewing a nail while she thought, "but I am willing to bet that the numbers are not random. She continued to stare at the scroll on the screen until she drew in a breath of delight. "There," she whispered and pointed to some numbers at the top of the screen. "It's the time code. Jeff created this yesterday at about 8pm."

Steve and Danny took note as this information would help them narrow the time of death which could, perhaps help them identify who killed the young man and why.

"Oh, Jeff," Denise breathed in something very akin to awe, "you are a genius."

"What? What do you see?" Danny still only saw numbers.

"I know what this is," Denise said triumphantly. "It's a Cipher Code Algorithm."

"A what?" Danny knew he sounded like an idiot and was fairly certain his mouth was hanging open, but Denise had just strung some words together that made no sense.

"Sorry," Denise said abashed. "It's a piece of code that generates a single use random password. In this case, the password is over two hundred characters long. It is impossible to duplicate because its different every time. This is some of the highest security that I have ever seen."

"A password? For what?" Danny asked.

Denise shrugged. "A secured computer. A data file…"

"Could it be for an encrypted stick drive?" Steve asked. "I found it in…," he trailed off when Denise looked at him, not wanting to remind her again of the death of her friend.

"Yes," Denise nodded excitedly, "it could be a stick drive. If you give it to me, I could decipher it."

"Can't do that," Steve said. "Its evidence."

"Ok," Denise said determinedly as she reached into a drawer and pulled out a stick drive of her own. "I will load this algorithm. When you get the other stick, download it first, then this one, and we can see what…," Denise stumbled on the words, "…what Jeff died for."

"OK," Aly whispered to herself as she and Kono stood in front of the computer at Five-O headquarters, "Let's see what we got here." Carefully Kono took the stick drive that Steve found in Jeff's hand and plugged it in. This had been the first piece of evidence that had been analyzed by the techs and now they and the entire team were staring at the large wall monitor.

As soon as the stick was inserted, countless lines of code started to scroll. Kono then inserted the stick that Denise had provided and everybody waited. After a few seconds, the lines of random numbers started to change. There was text, photographs, documents, and maps.

"Well," Danny asked impatiently. "What is it?"

"Oh my God," Alyssa whispered, not hearing Danny. "Its here. Its all here."

"What? What's here?" Steve asked, more shortly than he had meant to. He turned to apologize to Kono and Alyssa, but stopped when he realized that neither woman was paying any attention to him.

Alyssa watched the code transform into information. "He did it. Jeff really did it, " she exclaimed. He traced the money all the way through." Now that every eye was on her, she blushed, but continued to talk, pointing to the map on the screen. A series of codes flashed on the screen along with their translations. "Those codes represent banks - they are like the addresses to which the money travels," Alyssa said. "We had been wondering where the money was going. Jeff created code that chased it. The money is literally going all around the world." Alyssa pointed to the first set of codes. "It starts here in Hawaii, bounces among the various banks." Alyssa used a laser pointer to highlight the first numerical series. "Here is First Hawaiian, then it moves to BBCN and here is Bank of the Orient. Now," Alyssa continued, moving to the next several lines of numbers, "its moving to the mainland. Through Bank of America and Wells Fargo. Now its at Chase." A breath, "Now its heading to Asia. This is where it always gets messy, but Jeff was able to track this money through all the shell corporations and all the banks with all of their firewalls." She took a deep breath, "And this is not only happening at First Hawaiian. Jeff found the same transactions at every branch of every bank in Hawaii. All following the same path?"

"Ok," Steve said, trying to be patient. "Where does it all get us? Where does this path lead?"

"Right here," Alyssa said triumphantly. "Its all ending up in Japan at the Kogane no Jasumin corporation. Millions of dollars over time have landed there with nobody any the wiser…," she paused, "…until Jeff that is."

"What's does it mean," Danny asked and Alyssa shrugged her shoulders.

"Jasmine," Steve said, "that means Golden Jasmine."

"Hold on," Alyssa said as she ran to her desk and pulled out a thick file of papers. "Golden Jasmine, Corporation – I just saw that, somewhere….where the hell was it." She rifled through papers. "Here it is," she breathed and turned to the team. "Jonathan Abrams. The guy from Alexander and Baldwin." She stopped until she received a nod from Danny. "Well, he receives dividends from a Golden Jasmine Corporation in Japan." Alyssa stopped and scanned the information, her brow wrinkling, "This is very strange. Jasmine Corporation in closely held. Nobody should be investing in it. Its privately funded."

"If its privately funded," Chin cut in, "why are the paying out dividends?"

"That is a very good question," Alyssa said, thoughtfully. "It makes no sense."

"Maybe it does," Steve mused almost to himself.

Danny was the first to catch on. "Pay off of some type or maybe a bribe?" Steve nodded, his lips compressed tightly. "But a payoff for what?"

"No idea," Steve growled in frustration and there is not enough evidence here to get a warrant for Abrams's financials or to take a closer look at any of his business dealings."

Alyssa went back to the screen and kept looking. Her eyes got wide and she swore under her breath, however, the team was no longer paying attention as they were focused on the more immediate problems.

"Denise really should know about this," Danny said, reaching for his phone. "She needs to know that Jeff did a great job and that he may have broken this case for us." He waited for her to pick up and when she did not, he hung up looking slightly concerned. "That's weird, she always has her cell phone with her. Let me try calling her Secretary" Another minute as Danny dialed through to Denise's Administrative Assistant. "Hi Maggie. Its Detective Williams. I was trying to reach Denise and she is not answering." Danny listened for a moment, his face growing both confused and concerned. "A meeting? With whom? She told me she'd asked you to cancel all her meetings." Another moment of listening and the entire team saw Danny's face go pale. "I'll be right over. Please, don't let her leave."

"Danno? What's wrong?" Steve's voice was concerned after having seen his partner's face.

"Denise is in a meeting," Danny said. "With Abrams. I need to get over there now." Steve nodded.

"Need backup," Steve asked, but he was speaking to Danny's quickly retreating back as the man ran out of the office.

Danny waved to the security guard as he walked toward the elevator and hit the button for the twelfth floor. As soon as the door opened, he turned and walked toward Denise's corner office.

Her secretary was sitting at her desk and smiled. "Afternoon, Detective Williams."

"Hi Maggie," Danny tried to smile at the older woman so that she would not know how deeply worried he was. "Is Denise in there?"

"I'm sorry, Detective," she's gone. "Since its lunch time, Denise, Mr. Abrams and his associates stepped out for a bite."

Danny swallowed fear and tried to remain calm. "How long ago was this, Maggie?"

"Not more than ten minutes." Maggie seemed to sense Danny's turmoil and her face grew concerned. "Is there something wrong, Detective Williams?"

"No Maggi. Nothing 's wrong," Danny tried to sound like he meant it as he turned and ran for the elevator.


	17. Chapter 17

Danny grabbed for his phone and dialed. "Kono," he called into the phone breathlessly. "I need you to look at the security cameras at the bank."

"Working on it now, Danny," came Kono's response. "What's going on?" A moment later, "Is everything OK? Is Denise alright?"

"I don't know, Kono…I don't know." By this point, Kono had connected her phone to the speaker so that the entire team could listen in and everybody heard the concern and near desperation in Danny's voice."

"What the hell is going on," Steve's voice cut in. "Danny….talk to me."

"I think Abrams has Denise," came the breathless reply. "He must think that she knows something….that she has the information that he couldn't get it from Jeff." A pause as the horrible realization hit Danny right in the pit of his stomach. "Shit. Abrams probably thinks that Denise knows his secret…they killed Jeff…they'll…We did this…we put Denise in danger," Danny stopped, momentarily unable to control the panic overcoming him.

"Danny, listen to me." Steve's voice came through Danny's cell, cool and calm; almost emotionless, but it was the lifeline that Danny needed to snap him back. "We will get her. I swear to you, nothing will happen to her." Danny did not stop to think about the fact that there was no way for Steve to keep this promise; he knew that Steve always kept his word. Denise was going to be OK. "We got your back on this one," Steve was saying.

At that moment, Kono interrupted. "I got her. About ten minutes ago. She was outside the bank and getting into a car. There are three men. An older one," Danny interrupted at that moment.

"That would be Abrams. Who else?"

"Two goons. I would say body guards, but under the circumstances….enforcers?" Kono's voice rose at the end of the sentence questioning her own assumption. "Danny, it's a black Escalade!," she exclaimed. "The license plate…it looks like its covered in mud…"

"Convenient," Danny growled.

"They left heading East on Bishop," Kono continued, then paused and Danny heard the tapping of keys. "I can try to tap into other camera's along the way…," more tapping, "they look to be headed out of Honolulu. They got on the Liliʻuokalani Freeway."

"Where the hell are they going," Danny wondered aloud as he got into his car.

"Pearl Harbor. They are heading to Pearl Harbor." Danny heard Aly call out. "Alexander and Baldwin have warehouses near there – it's a holdover from when they were the key supplier to the US Navy."

"I'm on my way," Danny said. "Kono send me the address."

"Danny," Steve spoke up. He was concerned about Denise, but he was all business now; he was commander of Five-O and one of his own was about to do something foolish that could end badly. "You can't go alone. You've no idea what's waiting there. For all you know, Abrams may have a small army."

"Its always worked for you, Steve," Danny said into the phone, cringing when he realizing how harsh that sounded. If Steve was offended, he showed no indication.

"Wait for us there, Danny. That's an order." He waited for an acknowledgement. "Danny?", he said into the speaker. "Acknowledge." But the silence continued. Danny had put his phone down. He was not going to defy a direct order, but if he could avoid acknowledging it, maybe it would buy him time…maybe enough time to get to Denise.

"Damn," Steve swore. He knew what Danny was doing; exactly what he would have done if the roles were reversed. "Ok, people," he said looking around the office. "Danny needs us. Saddle up."

Danny checked his phone. It vaguely irritated him that he had been in Hawaii long enough to actually know how to get to the destination indicated in his text.

He floored the accelerator. He hated ignoring Steve; well it really was almost lying…but not quite. Steve would have done exactly the same thing if the roles were reversed. He knew that with a clear certainty. He also knew that Steve and the rest of Five-O were on their way and that they would have his back. He did not think that Abrams would have an army, but if he was smart, and there was every indication that Abrams was very smart indeed, he would have enough protection to stand against a lone cop. Unless that cop managed to be smarter. A plan started to come together in Danny's mind.

"Dammit, Steve. You're not leaving me behind. Not this time." Aly's voice was low and sharp as she leaned over Steve's desk her eyes burning. "You said it yourself, you've no idea what's going to be at the warehouse and you're going to need every bit of firepower you can going to need every bit of firepower you can get. I have been recertified and my Psych Eval is clean. I am not sure what your are worried about, but we can talk about it later…after we make sure that Denise is safe." Her eyes met Steve's eyes with unwavering conviction.

Steve looked at his sister, actually forcing his eyes to meet hers. She was right; he knew she was. Then why could he not bring himself to hand her the gun and badge still in his desk? Why was the only thing he could see in his mind's eye was her broken body at the bottom of the ravine?

"We'll talk about this later," he growled, immediately regretting his harshness when he say her eyes widen in surprised hurt.

Alyssa kept her cool, despite Steve's apparent anger. Something was bothering her brother – something that he was not sharing with her, but now was not the time or place to have the discussion. She just nodded.

"Look forward to it," she said as she clipped the badge and holster to her belt.

She gave Chin the smallest triumphant smile as she met his eyes walking out of Steve's office. Chin nodded. He was not sure if he wanted to know what Steve and Aly discussed or, if knowing them both as he did, he would prefer to remain ignorant.

Steve stepped out of his office. His mouth still had a hard set, but that could easily have been caused by his concern for his partner and for Denise and not by the concern about his little sister gnawing a hole through his heart. "Ok," he said. "Let's go."


	18. Chapter 18

Danny drove quickly, lights flashing, but chose to avoid the siren. He knew Steve and the team were on their way, but he did not know if they would get there in time. Abrams and his goons already killed Jeff. He was sure that they were also the ones responsible for Denise's "accident" on the freeway. He would not hesitate to kill again. Danny's blood ran cold…maybe…maybe they had already….No!. He couldn't contemplate that. Denise was smart; she'd figure out a way to buy time. She would know that he was going to come for her.

Steve and the team were racing toward the warehouse district with lights and sirens. They would silence them when they got closer, but right now, if this bought them even a few extra minutes, they would use it. Everybody was thinking it, but nobody wanted to say anything; was Denise even alive?

Growing up in a very working class neighborhood in New Jersey, Danny was very familiar with warehouses. Parties were held there in high school and the abandoned ones were great for exploring – assuming his parents did not catch him and beat the crap out of him for doing something stupidly dangerous. The warehouses were originally built in the late 1930's. They saw their greatest usage in the lead up to and during World War II. As the regulations changed, owners built on, adding exits, ventilation and finally fire control systems.

Danny knew that those systems were rudimentary and best, deepening on sensor's identifying smoke and not the more complex ones that were triggered by heat – this would serve to his advantage. Danny saw the warehouse complex looming ahead and killed the red flashing light on his dashboard. He drove down the rows of identical looking buildings. Five minutes later he was pulling into the parking lot of the Alexander and Baldwin Shipping main storage facility.

Checking his badge and making sure that his gun was loaded and the safety was on, Danny prepared to step out of the car. It was the middle of the business day and people were coming and going; nobody paid him any attention. Danny rummaged in the glove compartment until he found a box of matches, a leftover from the birthday cake and candles that he had bought for Grace's last birthday.

Danny exited the car and walked nonchalantly to the back of the building. He walked past loading docks. A handful were filling or emptying containers brought there by trucks. Others were closed. Then he was what he was looking for – an open loading doc with not container. Looking around, Danny quickly ran to the opening and ducked inside.

His plan was simple. Trigger the fire alarm system by creating smoke. The alarm should force everybody, including Abrams and his thugs to flee the office. Either they would take Denise with them and would be in the open where Danny could better deal with them, or, hopefully, leave her unattended so that he would be able to get to her.

As Danny saw it, there were two problems with this. He needed smoke and he needed to know where Abrams was keeping Denise. Making smoke should not be too hard. Danny looked around the empty loading bay and noticed random packing material, paper, peanuts and some boxes. He found a trash can, put the detritus inside and lit it, leaving it to smolder and make smoke.

Standing up, and straightening his shirt and pants, Danny was pleased that he had never accepted Steve's approach to work and still work a dress shirt and pants every day. As long as his gun and badge remained hidden, he could pass as somebody who belonged here. Danny adjusted his tie and walked out into the hallway.

The warehouse looked busy, but not chaotic. Danny made eye contact with another man dressed in clothing similar to him and flashed his best apologetic smile. "Excuse me. I have an appointment with Mr. Abrams. The guys," Danny waved vaguely behind him, "the guys pointed me in here, but I'm lost. No idea where I'm supposed to go. Do you have any idea where Mr. Abrams is right now?"

The other man, looked Danny over once and smiled an understanding smile. "This place is a maze. I keep thinking we need to hand out maps to visitors." He stopped to face Danny. "Mr. Abrams is in a meeting right now. Looks to be some pretty important people."

Danny's heart jumped. "Crap. It's alread started?" He took on the look of guilt and annoyance. "I am going to be in so much trouble with my boss if I am late...the dark haired lady...how pissed did she look."

The other guy smiled, taking pity on Danny. "Just a little annoyed, I'd say. They are in Mr. Abrams' office. Go down this hallway. Second left. Then third right. Can't miss it. Double glass doors."

Danny's face took on a look of relief which was not entirely fake. Denise was alive! "Thanks man," Danny said, clapping him on the shoulder. "I owe you." Danny walked off at a quick pace, trying to look as if concern and nonchalance were battling on his face.

As Danny moved through the hallways, he noticed that they became less and less crowded. He supposed that it made sense since most of the employees were needed to actually work in loading and unloading and fulfilling order; relatively few were needed to manage…and even fewer would have access to the big boss. This was both a blessing and a curse. Fewer people meant that Danny would be able to move unimpeded, but it also increased the likelihood that somebody would figure out that he did not belong there. Danny forced himself to walk slowly and focused on looking like he belonged.

Once in the hallway leading to Abrams' office, Danny began to hug the wall, trying to make himself as small and inconspicuous as possible. He strained to hear anything from behind the close doors. What he heard were voices raised as if in argument, but they were indistinct and he could not make out who was speaking or what was being discussed.

He risked a look through the glass doors, and saw Denise sitting across the desk from Abrams. At first glance, nothing seemed amiss, but Danny was able to see that one of her wrists was cuffed to the arm rest of the chair. The look on Denise's face was mutinous and angry. "That's my girl," Danny thought proudly. "Don't show them fear." Just at that moment, one of the men with Abrams lashed out at Denise. He struck her so hard that her head snapped back and then lolled forward; she appeared to be stunned or unconscious. Just in time, Danny realized that he was reaching for his gun and forced himself to relax and unclench the grip of his weapon. Just then, the fire alarm began to blare.


	19. Chapter 19

Danny looked around seeking a place to hide; this was the part that he had not planned for – the part that always seems to work out for Steve. Danny spotted a door to the janitor's closet and quickly ducked inside. He watched through the slightly opened door as employees streamed out waiting for one, or if he was very lucky, two, very specific employees.

His wish was partially granted as Danny saw one of the thugs exit Abrams' office and walk toward the janitor's closet. Danny waited, hoping to time it just right. As the man passed by, he swung the door violently, catching the man across the face. The larger man stumbled back and Danny stepped out of the closet, grabbing the much larger man from behind. He grabbed one of the flaying arms twisting it until the man fell to his knees. Danny quickly pulled the man into the closet.

Danny always railed at Steve for what he considered his partner's undue proclivity for violence. However, now, in the situation that he found himself, Danny saw only one solution. Reaching for his gun, Danny used the butt to club the man across the back of his neck knocking him out. The man fell limply at Danny's feet and Danny used some cleaning rags to gag and tie him.

"One down. One to go," Danny whispered.

_With lights and sirens, the Five-O team pulled up to the Baldwin warehouse. The team piled out of the their SUVs, only to see several hundred men and women milling about the parking lot. The sirens of fire engines could be heard in the back ground.

Steve scanned the crowd looking for Danny, but did not see his partner.

Chin walked up to Steve. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

Steve nodded, not taking his eyes off the mass of humanity. "Danny."

"This is a diversion. He's inside," Chin said and Steve nodded again.

The fire captain approached Steve, looking for anybody who looked to be in charge. Steve turned to the fire fighter. "I'm Steve McGarret with the Five-O Task Force." He shook hands.

"Captain James. Clinton James," The other man introduced himself.

"Captain, this may be a little strange, but there is no fire." The fire fighter looked dubious. "One of my people is in there. It is most likely a hostage situation and this is a diversion." Steve took a breath. "I can't let you go in there. There are men in there who are armed. Give us time to clean it out."

The Fire Chief did not look happy, but he nodded and went to tell his men that they

"OK, people," Steve commanded. "Saddle up." He looked at his team. "Lou, Aly. Take the back. See if you can sneak up on them." Lou and Alyssa nodded, shouldered their weapons and ran off. "Kono. Chin. You're with me. Lets see if we can find Danny."

_The hallway was now quiet, empty of all the employees who evacuated. Danny looked around for a diversion. Yet again, the only option appeared to be destructive. "Dammit, Steve," he muttered to himself. "I knew you were a bad influence, but this is ridiculous."

Danny looked around. Contrary to what he always told Grace, he was not the ideal child; he'd had his fair share of run ins with authority. One of those times was for creating a smoke bomb and setting it off in the boys' bathroom of his Catholic school. That time, he had also used ingredients he had found in a janitor's closet. A few minutes later, Danny was ready with a concoction that would have made Sister Catrina, his principal in seventh grade, sit up and take notice. He lit the wick on fire and rolled it toward Abrams' office.

Just as he had hoped, Abrams sent the other goon to investigate. Since the smoke made seeing difficult, Danny was able to walk up to the man and put his gun right to his temple to ensure compliance. Once the thug was safely tied up in the closet, Danny was able to contemplate his next steps.

Abrams did not seem like he wanted to come out, so the only thing that he could do was go in. He did not know if Abrams was armed, but looking in, he did not see the man have a gun. He was sitting behind his desk, waiting for Denise to regain consciousness.

Checking his gun one more time, Danny slowly opened the door.

Holding his badge in one hand and his gun in the other, Danny approached Denise and Abrams. "Five-O," he announced. "Mr. Abrams, please keep your hands where I can see them." He spared a glance at Denise who had woken up and was looking at him with wide, fearful eyes. "Are you OK," he asked, trying to sound neutral and not as if his own life depended on her answer and found that he was able to breathe again when she nodded mutely. He looked back at Abrams, to make sure that the ma had not moved his hands from the top of the desk.

"Detective Williams," the voice was as cold and cultured as Danny remembered it. But there was something else now. Danny realized that it was triumph. Something in Abrams' face put him on guard and when the man's eyes flicked to a door on the left side of the office, Danny turned and raised his gun. Denise screamed as the door was kicked open to reveal another armed body guard.

Danny had been expecting that; something in Abrams' expression had warned him. He raised his weapon, pivoted and squeezed the trigger twice. The man dropped without a sound.

"Oh very good, Detective Williams," Abrams complimented him. "Very well done indeed." Danny turned to the older man. "Sadly, however," Abrams continued, "it will not be enough." Danny pointed his gun at Abrams. "Oh put that down, Detective. You are not going to shoot me." Danny raised his eyebrows but kept his gun trained on the other man. "You see, Detective, this is a very special desk. It's a Banker's desk from 1856 and those desks had a very special feature. Miss Evans is seated as she is not just because I enjoy her lovely face and stimulating company but because she is directly in front of a large caliber rifle that is built into the underside of this desk. One move from you, and I will kill her."

Danny looked at Denise again and she gave him the slightest nod confirming what Abrams was saying. "What's the point, Abrams," Danny asked. "We all know that you were stealing money from the banks in Hawaii. Five-O has the information and it will be enough to make sure that you go to federal prison for a very long time. Why make it worse? Let us walk out of here and there may be a way to improve your circumstances."

"I do not think so, Detective. I have no intention of spending any time in prison whatsoever. You and Miss Evans are my ticket out of the country. You see your cooperation is ensured because anything less would mean Miss Evans' death." Abrams looked at Danny and continued. "Perhaps I am not making myself perfectly clear...a small demonstration, perhaps?"

Danny heard the unmistakable sound of the gun being cocked and knew that he needed to act immediately or risk...he could not even contemplate what he would be risking. His time had run out. Danny made a split second decision. He rushed toward the desk and in one motion threw his body over Denise. The chair toppled. The gun went off. Denise screamed and something that felt like a burning hot iron entered Danny's side. Danny grunted as the bullet tore through his side, but bit back a cry or pain and focused on raising his gun. In a fluid movement borne of many years of experience, he raised his gun, aimed and fired. The bullet struck Abrams on the right shoulder with the force of the bullet knocking him out of the chair.

Danny carefully moved off of Denise. "Denise, honey. Are you OK." Her eyes were closed and he gently brushed the hair from her face. Denise opened her eyes. "You're OK, honey," Danny spoke gently again, trying to reassure her. "Now lets get you out of here." He used the butt of the gun to break the handle of the chair and extricated the handcuff. Removing it from Denise's wrist would have to wait.

Sitting up, Denise looked around and gasped when she saw the red stain spreading across Danny's shirt."Oh God, Danny. You're hurt," she exclaimed.

With the adrenaline wearing off, Danny was beginning to feel light headed and his side hurt more than anything he could remember.

"I'll be OK. Its just a graze," he tried to reassure her. Denise reached for Danny who pulled her into an embrace. "Its OK," he soothed. "Everything is OK. Its over now."

_Grover and Alyssa heard the gun shot and the ran toward it. Kicking open the door to the office with their weapons at the ready. The sight in the room caught them completely off guard. Danny sat leaning against the desk. Next to him, knelt Denise, using her sweatshirt to staunch the blood.

Alyssa immediately went to Danny to check on him. "He'll be OK," she reassured Denise who looked on the verge of breaking down. "The bullet went cleanly through. He'll be just fine."

Grover had gone over to Abrams and pulled the man up. Abrams cried out as Grover pulled his arms back into hand cuffs. "Come on. You've got some explaining to do."

Steve, Chin and Kono ran in, followed by Captain James. Steve dropped on his knees by his friend, but Danny waved him off. "I'm OK. Just get me out of here."Together, Steve and Chin helped Danny, weakened by pain and loss of blood, outside to a waiting ambulance.

Denise refused to be separated from Danny and looked gratefully at Steve as he helped her into the ambulance. Resting a quick hand on his partner's shoulder, Steve smiled in relief, "you're in good hands, Buddy. We'll see you at the hospital."

Lying on a gurney, Denise's hand firmly in his, Danny was surprisingly content, but he could not let it go without one dig at his best friend. "This is all your fault," he grumbled. "You've infected me – now I act like you. I blow things up and I even manage to get shot. I'm telling you Steve, you are a menace." The paramedics closed the ambulance doors, leaving Steve standing with a bemused and surprised expression on his face.


	20. Chapter 20

An Epilogue to the story. Hopefully a nice little bow. I hope that you enjoy

***Six Days Later***

"So this was all to get rid of me as Chief Information Officer," Denise asked increduoulsy. Joseph Akeona hated me enough to do all this?". She was sitting on the edge of Danny's hospital bed and he had his arm around her. The Five-O team had met in Danny's hospital room to bring him up to speed. It had not escaped anybody's notice that Denise had barely left Danny's side since he'd rescued her.

"Apparently that and more," Kono said. "After we got Abrams to the hospital and he figured out that he had no alternatives, he was more than happy to talk for a chance of a reduced sentence."

The team listened attentively as the plan unfolded. "Akeona wanted you gone, Denise. Ideally permanently. He had hoped that there would be an "accident", Kono made air quotes with the word, accident," and that you would not survive. Apparently, there would have been a bonus in it for Abrams if that had happened."

Denise shuddered, and Danny tightened his arm. "But why?," She asked.

"Money." Steve said. The embezzeling that you had found while looking for Wo Fat spanned numerous banks across the US and the world. They were making millions of dollars and would have made more...if the CIO in place was looking the other way." Denise nodded and Steve continued, "Akeona felt that you had humiliated him and his family when you filed for divorce. This was his revenge."

"Seriously?" Denise could not help being stunned. "In this day and age."

Steve smiled sadly. "Afraid so...but it didn't go so well for him. Once Abrams started talking we couldn't shut him up. He and Akeona are both up on some pretty serious federal racketeering charges. The feds currently have them in Detention Center on the Island, but they'll move them once they are finished with the paperwork.

"Oh yes, the paperwork," Denise groaned. "I got that a few days ago." At the questioning looks, she continued. "The house was a wedding gift and Derrick and I bought our cars together so it was his money and mine. Anything that could have been acquired, even in part with Akeona money considered tainted and has been confiscated." Denise permitted herself a laugh, "Luckily my shoes and purses were purchased with my own money. I rented a place and am looking to buy...its really a small price to pay to be done with this nightmare and have the Akeona's out of my life for good."

Steve nodded agreement. This case had not gone how he had hoped. It had starte search for Wo Fat and the Five ) team instead found Federal criminals and protected the banking world from losses in the millions. He should feel good, but there was a nagging sense of incompleteness, Wo Fat was still out there. He looked around and caught Alyssa's eyes. She was alternating reading from a print out she had brought and following the conversation; she was unusually quiet which , Steve knew was cause for concern. Since the team was now engaged in a lively discussion of where Denise should buy the house, he surreptitiously slipped out, motioning Alyssa to follow him.

"You OK," he asked, trying to be causal, but failing.

"Steve," Alyssa said. Remember when we followed the money trail and found Abrams?" Steve nodded. "I kept following it and it became easier when I used Jeff's algorithm. I followed the money after it left Golden Jasmine. And a portion...a substnatial portion ended up back here, in Hawaii." Steve nodded for her to continue. "Steve," Alyssa's whisper was now intense and, Steve noted had a quality of fear in it. "The money is going to Lotus Corp," She paused to let that sink in,

Steve was nodding his head, his heart hammering in his chest. "That means...," he said slowly..

"It means," Alyssa completed his sentence, "That Wo Fat is here. In Hawaii. It means that he never left." Steve reached out to pull his sister into a fierce embrace, hoping to ease the fear that he saw rising in her eyes.


End file.
